Senator Rosen: “If anti-choice Republicans in Congress have their way… Nevada doctors could be prosecuted, Nevada women could be jailed, and Nevada women could die as a result of the lack of access to care.”
Watch Senator Rosen’s Speech HERE
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Senator Jacky Rosen (D-NV) expressed strong opposition to Republican attempts to pass a nationwide abortion ban during a speech on the Senate floor, and called on her colleagues to pass legislation she helped introduce to protect doctors from being prosecuted by anti-choice states. This nationwide abortion ban would override Nevada law protecting abortion rights. In 1990, Nevada voters passed a statewide referendum with nearly two-thirds support codifying state law protecting abortion rights.
Senator Rosen has been a leader in the fight against Republican attempts to ban abortions and restrict women’s reproductive rights. She helped introduce the Let Doctors Provide Reproductive Health Care Act to protect doctors in pro-choice states like Nevada from prosecution by anti-choice states. Senator Rosen also helped introduce and voted to pass the Women’s Health Protection Act to protect access to reproductive health care and safeguard against dangerous abortion bans and restrictions.
Watch Senator Rosen’s full remarks here.
Below are Senator Rosen’s floor remarks as delivered:
Mr. President,
In the months since the conservative majority on the Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade, the assault on reproductive rights by anti-choice, MAGA Republicans has been relentless.
Anti-choice states across the country have already enacted strict and rigid abortion bans that strip our rights away, threaten to jail women and their doctors, and put womens’ health at risk.
And, just as we have always known, this threat is not just at the state level.
Last week, legislation was introduced in this very chamber to enact a national abortion ban, one that would strip women of the fundamental right to control their own bodies.
This abortion ban – and that’s exactly what it is, a nationwide abortion ban – poses a real serious and very real threat to the rights of women across this country.
This is a dangerous nationwide government mandate that would threaten women, would threaten their doctors, and threaten them with jail time including those in my state of Nevada.
Pro-choice states like Nevada, where the people voted overwhelmingly to protect reproductive freedoms as part of state law, would be forced, forced to abide by this federal mandate.
Because federal law supersedes state law, this legislation would override the will of Nevadans and the freedom, the freedom that they’ve had for decades.
If anti-choice Republicans in Congress have their way and their national abortion ban passes then listen to this: Nevada doctors could be prosecuted; Nevada women could be jailed; and Nevada women could die as a result of the lack of access to care.
So, let’s be clear — the only thing standing in the way of their national abortion ban is the pro-choice majority in the Senate.
And I will do everything I can to fight this legislation threatening our reproductive rights, not just in Nevada but across the country.
That’s why I helped introduce the Let Doctors Provide Reproductive Healthcare Act along with Senators Murray, Padilla, and Presiding Officer, Mr. President, Senator Lujan to protect doctors in states like Nevada, where abortion remains legal, from facing, from facing prosecution and potentially jail by anti-choice states.
No doctor – I’m going to repeat this – no doctor should ever be jailed for providing women with the reproductive, and often life-saving care they need, wherever these women are from. No doctor should ever be jailed for providing care.
Anti-choice Republicans in the Senate have blocked these efforts in the past as they continue to push for dangerous bans.
Today, today, we have another opportunity to protect doctors and their patients by passing this legislation without obstruction or delay.
Because, let’s be clear, we will, we will not give up.
We will not allow a national abortion ban to pass the Senate.
We will not allow doctors to face prosecution for doing their jobs.
And we must protect a woman’s right to choose and continue fighting against this ban every step of the way.
Thank you.
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