01.17.24

Cantwell Calls for Federal Law to Protect Reproductive Care Workers From Prosecution in Anti-Choice States

In briefing ahead of Roe v. Wade anniversary, senators ask panel of abortion experts about security threats & staffing struggles; Cantwell: “The Washington-Idaho border is the epicenter of this discussion”

WASHINGTON, D.C. –Today, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) questioned a panel of abortion experts on the state of reproductive rights in America during a briefing with Senate Democrats ahead of the anniversary of the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision on Jan. 22. Her questioning focused on the burden that laws criminalizing abortion have placed on health care providers in states like Washington where abortion is still legal, and the need for federal protection from prosecution.

The briefing was hosted by U.S. Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) and featured three panelists: Dr. Austin Dennard, an OB/GYN and plaintiff in the Zurawski v. State of Texas case; Dr. Serina Floyd, the current Chief Medical Officer at Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan DC Inc.; and Jessica Valenti, an author, speaker, and founder of the daily newsletter Abortion Every Day. 

“Washington, next door to Idaho -- we're the island of any kind of relief. So, it's not surprising to see that we've seen a 56% increase in the amount of patients coming to Planned Parenthood clinics from Idaho over the last year […] What happens to physicians that actually live in Idaho, who practice at Planned Parenthood clinics, and then go back to Idaho? What kind of protections exist for them? What kind of protections exist for Planned Parenthood, who already has a massive amount of security demands put on it?” Sen. Cantwell asked.

“The Washington-Idaho border is the epicenter of this discussion,” Sen. Cantwell added. “We have to have a federal law to protect people.”

“Burnout in medicine in general is a huge problem right now,” said Dr. Floyd. “When we're talking about the potential risk, as a provider, of potential criminalization, of the possibility that you yourself, by just trying to do your job, can be taken from your family, put in prison, be fined ridiculous amounts of money. Yes. The stress is very real.”

“This is where we need federal legislation,” Dr. Floyd added. “This is where we need for there to be victories that will help to give us not only just a little bit of a release on the pressure valve, but also momentum to keep going with the fight.”

In April, Sen. Cantwell joined U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) and 25 other colleagues in reintroducing the Let Doctors Provide Reproductive Health Care Act, which would ban anti-choice states from restricting or preventing health care providers from performing abortions in states where abortion is legal.

“When you're not able to anticipate, or when what you're seeing is much more than what you had originally planned for, that's where we often call upon other members of our community. One thing I can say about the abortion provider community is that we are a pretty […] tightly knit group. And whether we are talking about a patient who was needing to receive care at a Planned Parenthood, or a patient who is needing to be seen at an independent clinic, we are at a point where we are constantly collaborating, working together,” Dr. Floyd said.

“If I can add something about clinic security -- we're seeing such an increase in violence and harassment against providers and clinics. And I just want to point out that one of the growing trends in the anti-abortion movement is attacking buffer zone laws and claiming that they are a violation of free speech rights. And so, it's so important that we're paying attention to this because they are desperate to let anti-abortion activists who are harassing patients, screaming at patients, throwing things at patients, get closer and closer to them and to do away with any buffer of safety that patients and providers had,” Jessica Valenti said.

“I think another thing to mention that we haven't really spoken about -- and Dr. Floyd, I'm sure you can speak to this -- is the amount of provider burnout that we're at risk of having now,” Dr. Dennard said. “I feel burnout from being in a place where care is not available.  But physicians like Dr. Floyd are seeing such an influx of patients, it really can affect your mental health. And providers need to be able to take care of themselves so that they can take care of their patients. I can't even fathom, as an OB/GYN, what your day is like every day, Dr. Floyd.”

Currently, 21 states have total abortion bans or stringent restrictions in place, and in 2023, over 1,000 provisions to impose further limits on reproductive health care or roll back reproductive rights were introduced across the country. 

Since a leaked draft opinion indicated the Supreme Court’s intent to overturn the reproductive care precedent established under Roe v. Wade, Sen. Cantwell has been focused on protecting abortion access and choice for women across the country. In March 2023, Sen. Cantwell joined Sen. Murray in reintroducing the Women’s Health Protection Act and hosting a roundtable discussion on the path forward to defend Americans’ reproductive rights. 

In May, Sen. Cantwell joined 12 Senate colleagues in reintroducing the My Body, My Data Act to protect personal reproductive health data. 

Also in May, Sen. Cantwell joined 29 Senate colleagues to introduce the Protecting Service Members and Military Families’ Access to Health Care Act, legislation that would codify the Department of Defense’s policy to help service members and their families access non-covered reproductive health care – including abortion services – regardless of the state in which they are stationed. 

In June, Sen. Cantwell joined colleagues in reintroducing the Right to Contraception Act to codify the right to contraception access established by the Supreme Court ruling Griswold v. Connecticut in 1965. The same month, Sen. Cantwell cosponsored the Freedom to Travel for Health Care Act to ban anti-choice states from penalizing or prosecuting health care providers that offer reproductive services in states where abortion care is legal.

Also in June, Sen. Cantwell released a snapshot report about the impact of the Dobbs decision on abortion providers and patients in Washington state. Her report included new data showing substantial increases in out-of-state abortion patients, especially from Idaho, in the first half of 2023 compared to the same time period in 2022.

In July, Sen. Cantwell joined 46 colleagues in writing to Secretary Becerra to urge HHS to adopt stronger privacy regulations for Americans’ protected health information, including a warrant requirement for the release of medical records in the reviewed Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) privacy rule regulation.  These protections are particularly important because 19 Republican attorneys general – including Idaho’s Raúl Labrador – sent a public comment to Secretary Becerra strongly opposing the Department of Health and Human Services’ revised HIPAA protections. If successful, their opposition would make it easier for officials in Idaho to investigate abortions performed in Washington state and prosecute patients and providers.  This is alarming in light of the findings in Sen. Cantwell’s snapshot report showing increases in out-of-state abortion patients in Washington.

Last month, Sen. Cantwell joined a resolution expressing support for the abortion medication mifepristone and calling for the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of the drug to be respected. The resolution followed a U.S. Supreme Court announcement it will review a lower court ruling that would restrict access to mifepristone nationwide -- including in states like Washington that have expressly codified the right to an abortion into law.

A recording of the full abortion rights briefing can be found HERE. Audio of Sen. Cantwell’s Q&A can be heard HERE; a transcript is HERE.