For Immediate Release: July 12, 2018
Contact: [email protected]
After the House Appropriations Committee marked up its FY’19 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education spending bill, NARAL Pro-Choice America’s Vice President Adrienne Kimmell issued the following statement:
“Yet again, Republican committee leadership is trying to hijack the appropriations process and use it to attack reproductive freedom and undermine women and families. By inserting poison-pill riders, funding programs that are both ineffective and harmful, and continuing their endless crusade to defund Planned Parenthood, House leaders are jeopardizing the health and safety of millions of women.
“The bill eliminates all funding for the Title X family planning program, which provides over four million low-income women and men basic healthcare each year. The bill also eliminates the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program and increases support for failed and dangerous ‘abstinence-only’ programs, despite support for proven, comprehensive sex-ed programs. Simply put, this bill is designed to attack women’s rights. It’s hypocritical that the party that claims to be “pro-life” is gutting programs that are vital to ensuring women and families can thrive and have economic stability. This bill is shameful, harmful, and dangerous.”
The bill inserts a new bill known as the “Conscience Protection Act,” which allows individuals and organizations to refuse to facilitate, participate in any way, or make arrangements for abortion care even when a woman’s health is in danger.