West Palm Beach, FL – Today, Congresswoman Lois Frankel (FL-21) released the following statement applauding the Department of Justice’s decision to sue the state of Texas over its harmful abortion ban that went into law last week. 

“The decision about whether, when, or how to become a parent is one of the most important decisions we make, yet this Texas abortion law wants to leave this life-changing, personal decision in the hands of anti-abortion bounty hunters,” said Rep. Frankel. “I’m glad to see the Department of Justice take action to stop this terrible law. Now it’s time for Congress to do our part and pass the Women’s Health Protection Act which would protect health care providers’ ability to deliver abortion services and patients’ access to those services free from medically unnecessary and onerous restrictions.”

Texas’s S.B. 8 law bans abortions at six weeks, before most individuals even know they are pregnant. It does not include any exceptions for cases of rape or incest. The law allows citizens to bring civil suits against anyone who assists a patient seeking abortion, without having to show any connection to the person being sued.

In June, Rep. Frankel, a lead sponsor, introduced the Women’s Health Protect Act, bicameral legislation that would establish patients’ right to abortion, free from medically unnecessary restrictions and bans, anywhere in the United States. This critical legislation would undo the harm done by Texas’s S.B. 8 and other abortion bans that have been introduced across the country.

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