U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., joined other Democratic senators Wednesday to introduce a federal bill designed to allow women to make their own private health decisions without interference from controversial health legislation.
The bill, officially named the Women’s Health Protection Act, would prohibit laws, such as recent abortion-related state legislative bills that put “burdensome” requirements on women’s reproductive health services, according to a statement from Baldwin released Wednesday.
Baldwin said in the statement the bill would specifically exempt women from laws that require doctors to test women prior to providing health services, such as an abortions, and laws that prohibit doctors from prescribing and administering certain medications, not including birth control.
“In Wisconsin and in states across the country, politicians have been standing between women and their doctors, restricting the choices women can make regarding their own reproductive health,” Baldwin said in the statement. “They are doing this because they think they know better than women and their doctors.”
Leah Hunter, a spokesperson for Baldwin, said in an emailed statement the bill currently has support from 30 senators and 52 representatives. It also has support from Wisconsin women’s health groups, including Planned Parenthood Advocates of Wisconsin and the Wisconsin Women's Network.
Baldwin said she supported the bill to “stand up” to “attacks” on women’s freedom.
“Every American woman deserves access to quality, safe health care and the ability to exercise her individual and constitutional rights to make her own, private health decisions,” said in the statement.
