STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- The House passed the Women’s Health Protection Act on Friday as part of the Democrats’ efforts to protect abortion rights established under the 1973 Supreme Court case Roe v. Wade.
As federal law, the bill would overrule and pre-empt restrictive abortion-related laws at the state level such as Texas’ S.B. 8 law – bans abortions as early as six weeks into pregnancy – and ensure a woman’s right to have an abortion.
The Women’s Health Protection Act passed along party lines 218-211, just meeting the 218 minimum number of votes required. Only one Democrat, Rep. Henry Cuellar of Texas, voted against the bill, NBC News reported.
The bill is not likely to make it through the Senate unless at least 10 Republicans support the bill, which would result in meeting the 60-vote threshold needed to block a filibuster.
During a press conference in front of the Capitol, before the vote, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the bill was concerning freedom.
“This is about freedom, about freedom from, about freedom of women have choices on the size and timing of their families, [which is] not the business of people on the court or members of Congress about themselves,” she said.
Pelosi also discussed the Supreme Court’s decision not to block Texas’ S.B. 8 law, which also allows private citizens to sue anyone who receives or performs an abortion after a fetal heartbeat is detected – typically about six weeks into the pregnancy.
“When this court embraced this shameful Texas law they brought shame to the United states Supreme Court because they were embracing something which was counter to the precedent of the court that’s upheld Roe v. Wade as constitutional,” said Pelosi.
The Supreme Court will review a case dealing with a restrictive abortion law in Mississippi in December.
After the vote, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) tweeted his support, “Congress must protect the constitutional right to abortion. We’re proud the House passed Women’s Health Protection Act. The Senate will vote soon.”
Congresswoman Nicole Malliotakis (R-Staten Island/South Brooklyn) took to Twitter to express her disapproval of the Women’s Health Protection Act.
“Pelosi’s radical abortion bill allows abortions to take place up until birth. Democrats wouldn’t even support requiring medical attention for babies born alive during failed abortions. It’s barbaric but thankfully it doesn’t look like the senate will take it up,” said the congresswoman.
Julienne Verdi, who is an attorney, reproductive rights activist, and the chair and founder of Move Forward Staten Island, told the Advance/SILive.com that she was not surprised that Malliotakis voted against the bill.
“Time and again, whether it be in the New York State Assembly or United States Congress, when given the opportunity to stand up for and protect access to basic sexual and reproductive health care, Malliotakis shows how extreme she is on this issue,” she said.
“She’s hiding behind misinformation and fear-mongering to justify her vote but we know her record in the Assembly went even so far as to attempt to impose restrictions on abortion access here in New York with the intent to shut down reproductive health care clinics like Planned Parenthood and then hypocritically she even opposed access to contraception with her no vote on the Comprehensive Contraception Coverage Act,” Verdi continued.
In her opposition to the measure, Malliotakis’ office highlighted a Queens case where a man accused of killing his pregnant girlfriend was spared an abortion charge in connection with the baby due to the Reproductive Health Act in New York.
“Not only does the law allow later term abortion up until birth, it changed the penal code to prohibit justice if a woman is assaulted and loses her baby due to miscarriage,” Malliotakis said. “How is that protecting a woman’s choice?”