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Congresswoman Gwen Moore Votes NO on Extreme Forced-Birth GOP Legislation

Today, Congresswoman Moore voted no on the GOP’s so-called Pregnant Students’ Rights Act and the so-called Supporting Pregnant and Parenting Women and Families Act:

“Republicans continue to double down on their extreme agenda to deny women full control over their bodies.

The GOP is proving once again that their concerns for life ends as soon as the umbilical cord is cut, forcing women to give birth while failing to provide any resources to support the health and wellbeing of the baby and mother such as childcare or maternal health care.  

This dangerous legislation, the so-called Pregnant Students’ Rights Act would mislead pregnant students about all the health options available to them in efforts to limit access to abortion care. Pregnant students need all the support and information to make the best decisions for them and their families.

As a mother, grandmother, and great grandmother who served as an abortion counselor, I can speak to this issue on a deeply personal level. Congress shouldn’t try to make interventions that seek to limit a woman’s reproductive care options. That’s why I oppose GOP legislation to support funneling federal funds to crisis pregnancy centers, which operate without credible health care professionals and use coercive messages to push women to carry their pregnancy to full term. These centers fail to help women in crisis and have only one agenda: to keep women pregnant. I support the Biden administration’s efforts to ensure TANF funds are serving those who need them most. I implore my House GOP colleagues to join Democrats in addressing the pressing needs of our families by working to expanding access to childcare, healthcare, good-paying jobs, and affordable housing. Women and their families need support before and after childbirth.”

Background

House Republicans introduced their so-called Supporting Pregnant and Parenting Women and Families Act, which would block restrictions prohibiting the use of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds toward supporting “crisis pregnancy centers.” Crisis pregnancy centers claim to offer supportive services to pregnant women but do not offer medically sound guidance or provide access to health care professionals or reproductive health care.

The so-called Pregnant Students’ Rights Act would mandate that higher education institutions distribute resources informing them of their existing rights but omit information regarding abortion care or contraceptive care. This legislation does not secure new rights for pregnant students or offer additional services to students and would curtail access to information regarding abortion care services for pregnant students.