Rep. Schrier Participates in Oversight Hearing on Abortion Rights

WASHINGTON, DC – Today Congresswoman Kim Schrier, M.D. (WA-08), the only pro-choice woman doctor in Congress, participated in an Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee hearing on the recent Supreme Court decision on abortion rights. The Subcommittee heard from several doctors about the impacts of the decision on patients seeking abortions and doctors who provide abortion care. Rep. Schrier’s remarks can be found here.

“I have been in the exam room with teens facing unplanned pregnancies and with mothers who find out the pregnancy they were so excited about is not a viable one. A pregnant woman diagnosed with oral cancer when she visited her dentist, and then had to decide whether to end the pregnancy to treat her life-threatening cancer,” said Rep. Schrier. “These women all had a choice. Women in 16 states right now do not have that choice. And it is horrifying to me that politicians think they can make these decisions for women.”

During her time, Rep. Schrier spoke about how doctors take an oath to “first do no harm” and abortion bans put doctors in an untenable situation where they can’t always help their patients. Or care is delayed when doctors have to consult lawyers before providing care. Dr. Nisha Verma, an OB-GYN who practices in Georgia, told Rep. Schrier that doctors are very capable at looking at the patient in front of them and making the best possible decision for their care. And that these laws are causing doctors to pause because we are seeing states coming after doctors and criminalizing doctors.

When Rep. Schrier asked whether these laws have compromised the health of women, Dr. Verma responded “absolutely.” Rep. Schrier also asked Dr. Verma about the threats that doctors and medical facilities have faced for decades for providing abortions and how a woman’s mental health is affected if she is denied an abortion.

Last week Rep. Schrier voted for two bills on the House floor that will ensure women can continue to access abortion care, no matter where they live.