House Moves to Ban Abortion Before A Woman Knows She is Pregnant

NARAL Pro-Choice America Senior Vice President Sasha Bruce issued the following statement after the House GOP announced plans to hold a hearing on a new abortion ban that outlaws abortion before a woman knows she is pregnant:

“The GOP’s obsession with banning all abortions in this country knows no end, no boundary, and no common sense. Their latest clearly unconstitutional idea is a ban that applies to women who don’t even know they’re pregnant yet, intentionally preventing them from accessing care altogether. Instead of wasting taxpayer money pursuing ideas meant only to pander to their shrinking base, Congress should focus their attention on the numerous crises this country faces, many largely caused by the Republican Party’s inability to govern.

“Americans are clear: they want their elected officials addressing the crises our country faces instead of wasting time and taxpayer dollars attempting to ban abortion. The majority of Americans stand on the side of abortion access, and seven in 10 Americans believe abortion should remain legal and accessible. That’s not just a majority, that’s consensus, and we will keep mobilizing and organizing to ensure that all women can make decisions about their lives, bodies, and futures.”

This particular abortion ban has never been introduced, heard, or voted on in Congress until this year. But next week’s hearing marks the second major action in two weeks from the House of Representatives to ban abortion. Most recently, the House GOP voted on an abortion ban as their response to the largest mass shooting in modern history. Last week, Mitch McConnell pledged to bring an unconstitutional abortion ban to the floor of the Senate.

NARAL Pro-Choice America and its network of state affiliates are dedicated to protecting and expanding reproductive freedom for all Americans. NARAL works to guarantee that every woman has the right to make personal decisions regarding the full range of reproductive choices, including preventing unintended pregnancy, bearing healthy children, and choosing legal abortion. In recognition of its work defending our constitutional right to choose, Fortune Magazine described NARAL as “one of the top 10 advocacy groups in America.”