State Senate Democrats introduce Abortion Protection Package

• Ben Wasserstein/WITF
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The debate over a person’s right to an abortion has been amplified since Roe v. Wade was overturned last summer.

Now two Democratic state senators are introducing a legislative package to protect those seeking, providing or having abortions.

Sens. Judith Schwank, D- Berks, and Amanda Cappelletti, D-Montgomery, are sponsoring the bills.

To Schwank, the package is a necessity given the current political climate.

“We felt it was important that we put this into place in law so that this would be very clear this is where Pennsylvania stands,” Schwank said. “And knowing that so many states now have outlawed abortion at various times during a pregnancy, and also some have indicated that individuals could be prosecuted, we felt it was important that we do our best to try to protect individuals who are seeking an abortion, as well as the abortion providers.”

The package includes six pieces of legislation that focus on:

• Prohibiting state courts from cooperating with out-of-state cases
• Prohibiting courts from enforcing another state’s judgment
• Preventing healthcare licensure boards from taking action against reproductive healthcare providers
• Preventing insurance companies from taking action against providers
• Shielding providers’ home addresses
• Protecting reproductive health records from disclosure in civil or criminal matters

Schwank and Cappelletti don’t anticipate the package to pass the Republican-led Senate.

“I’ll be very direct about that, but both Senator Capelletti and I felt it was important that we put in place these protections rather than assuming that they would go on forever and perhaps be surprised when they were not or when a case came up,” Schwank said.

Should it fail to pass, both Senators say they would continue to pursue abortion protections.

“I will always stand up for these things and continue to fight to ensure that the access is protected and that our abortion providers are protected as well,” Cappelletti said.

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