HARRISBURG, June 23, 2023 − The leaders of the Pennsylvania Women’s Health Caucus today issued this statement on the eve of the one-year mark of the U.S. Supreme Court decision to nullify Roe v. Wade and the constitutional right to abortion.
“After the U.S. Supreme Court decision on Dobbs v. Jackson was handed down, anti-abortion legislators, governors, and legislatures across the nation made quick work of dismantling the right to abortion in their states, leaving millions of people with few to no options when it comes to their own health. Anti-abortion legislators in Harrisburg made and continue to make aggressive plays to remove the right to an abortion from the Pennsylvania constitution and pave the way for an extreme abortion ban.
“Despite their aggressive efforts to dismantle the right to abortion, one year after the U.S. Supreme Court ripped apart the 50-year foundation of the right to choose, abortion remains safe and legal in Pennsylvania, and the PA Women’s Health Caucus remains committed to preserving access to abortion and the rights of women, non-binary and transgender people and families to make their own healthcare decisions without interference.
“The Women’s Health Caucus is not only committed to protecting Pennsylvanians’ rights to make private medical decisions, we also are committed to protecting abortion providers from prosecution, expanding access to reproductive health care, including access to fertility treatment and contraception, and removing barriers to abortion.
“Long before Dobbs was handed down, the Women’s Health Caucus fought to ensure that Pennsylvanians have the right to make private, personal medical decisions. And we always will.”
The Women’s Health Caucus legislative agenda can be found here. Its co-chairs are state Senators Amanda Cappelletti and Judy Schwank and state Representatives Gina H. Curry and Mary Jo Daley. The Joint Subcommittee on Women and Girls of Color is chaired by state Representative La’Tasha D. Mayes.