Washington, D.C. — Congresswoman Marilyn Strickland (WA-10) introduced the Ensuring Women’s Right to Reproductive Freedom Act with Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher (TX-07) and Congressman Jamie Raskin (MD-08).
“In 2022, we saw the Supreme Court end a woman’s right to reproductive choice, and states have followed suit with even greater attempts to limit women’s reproductive health care. Impeding a woman’s right to travel for care is an assault on her freedom,” said Strickland. “This bill reaffirms that Constitutional right, and I am proud to stand with my colleagues as we stand up for what’s just and right.”
“My home state of Texas is in crisis, as are states across the country, where access to abortion has been effectively eliminated in almost all circumstances—including in cases of rape or incest,” said Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher. “People in Texas who are able to do so have been traveling out of state to obtain abortion care. And now that fifteen other states have banned abortion, more people are traveling even further to get the reproductive health care they need. In response to this exercise of the constitutional right to travel, lawmakers and others in Texas—and in states across the country—are threatening to take away that right, too.”
“We cannot let that happen in any state in the United States of America,” Congresswoman Fletcher continued. “To that end, I am glad to reintroduce the Ensuring Women’s Right to Reproductive Freedom Act with Congresswoman Marilyn Strickland, Congressman Jamie Raskin, and more than 150 of our colleagues as original co-sponsors. I look forward to continuing our vital work together to protect the health, privacy, dignity, and freedom of women and families across this country.”
“This bill reaffirms and protects the time-honored constitutional right to travel across state lines, including to obtain health care services,” said Congressman Jamie Raskin. “Extremist Republicans aren’t satisfied with simply banning abortion at the state level–they want to stop Americans from seeking an abortion anywhere. Our legislation protects patients who must cross state lines to obtain a safe and legal abortion, as well as anyone who helps them travel and their health care providers. Democrats will continue to reject efforts by extremists to dismantle this basic right of Americans to cross state lines and will never stop fighting for every American to have the freedom to make their own health care decisions.”
This bill ensures that individuals crossing state lines seeking safe and legal reproductive health care, or those traveling with them, are protected from receiving criminal punishment. The 14th Amendment of the Constitution of the United States protects the right to travel between states.
Read the text of the bill here.
Representative Marilyn Strickland serves on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, and is the only African-American woman who serves on the House Armed Services Committee. She is a member of the New Democrat Coalition, is one of the first Korean-American women elected to Congress and is the first African-American elected to represent the Pacific Northwest at the federal level.
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