West Palm Beach, FL — Today, Congresswoman Lois Frankel (FL-22) released the following statement after the Florida State House passed SB300. The bill, which now goes to Governor DeSantis to be signed into law, will ban abortions in Florida after six weeks, which is before many women know they are pregnant. Doctors who provide abortion care for patients after the six-week mark could face up to five years in prison.  

“Women should have the freedom to make decisions about when or whether to start or grow a family, without political interference. That means having access to contraception and legal abortion,” said Rep. Frankel. “Florida’s abortion ban is cruel, it’s backwards, and it won’t just be devastating for the women of Florida—its impact will be felt across the Southeast. That's why Congress must pass the Women’s Health Protection Act, which would prohibit federal or state laws that ban or create medically unreasonable restrictions.”

Rep. Frankel is a co-lead of the Women’s Health Protection Act, which she helped re-introduce in the House of Representatives alongside Reps. Chu (CA-28), Pressley (MA-08), Escobar (TX-16) and 204 additional House Democrats on March 30, 2023. 

The Women’s Health Protection Act creates a federal statutory right for health care providers to provide abortion care and a corresponding right for their patients to receive that care—free from bans and medically unreasonable restrictions. The legislation would also protect the ability to travel out of state for abortion care. Companion legislation was introduced in the Senate by U.S. Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), along with 47 other members of the Senate Democratic Caucus.

###