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Veasey Proudly Joins Bicameral Amicus Brief in Support of Women Health Care Providers

January 5, 2016

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Congressman Marc Veasey released the following statement after the submission of the bicameral Amicus Brief in support of women health care providers in the Supreme Court review of Texas' anti-choice abortion laws:

"I was proud to join my colleagues Representatives DeGette, Slaughter, and Chu and Senators Murray and Blumenthal in filing an amicus brief today urging the Supreme Court to strike down HB 2, Texas' anti-abortion law in the case Whole Woman's Health v. Cole. The decision in this case could have far-reaching, devastating implications not only for Texas women, but for millions of women in this country.

For decades, the Supreme Court has affirmed that the U.S. Constitution protects every woman's right to make her own healthcare decisions in consultation with her physician and her family. However, anti-choice politicians have been relentless in their attempts to deny this right through legislative gimmicks. The mandates in HB 2 bury women's health clinics under requirements so onerous that they would drive more than 75 percent of clinics in Texas out of business. These requirements do nothing to improve women's health and serve only to limit women's access to reproductive care.

An insurmountable barrier to access would be created if the Court allows this dangerous law to be implemented. Its effects have already begun to reverberate across the state. According to reports, approximately 20 health centers have closed across Texas. Lack of access to abortion has already lead up to 240,000 Texas women to attempt to end a pregnancy on their own. This cannot stand.

A constitutional right means nothing without the ability to exercise that right. The nation's women, and particularly Texas women, have grown weary of the continuous assault on their bodies and their rights. My Republican colleagues continually state it is their duty to ensure the government does not come between and a patient and their doctor. It would serve them well to take their own advice."

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