Sen Republicans Refuse to Include Exceptions for Incest and Rape Victims in Extreme Abortion Cases
Contact Name: Marina Altschiller
Phone: (603) 271-3207
CONCORD - Yesterday, Senate Republicans refused to adopt a modest amendment that would have included the most basic of exceptions to their abortion ban and would have protected the health and well-being of the pregnant person.
Senator Becky Whitley (D-Hopkinton) issued the following statement in response:
“The Republicans’ vote against an amendment that centered the health and well-being of a pregnant person was truly stunning. This amendment would have added the most basic, humane exceptions to the draconian abortion ban Republicans have shoved into the budget. It would have ensured that people who desperately need care in complex circumstances can actually get the help they need. The exception in the Republicans’ legislation is so narrow that it does not do nearly enough to protect the health and well-being of the pregnant person and ignores the emotional or psychological health of the pregnant person, or other critical considerations as determined by a patient and their doctor.
Let’s start with survivors of rape or incest. There are many reasons why women and girls who are sexually assaulted cannot come forward and get the care they need within Republicans’ arbitrary timeframe. Opponents may say this situation is rare. That opinion is frighteningly out of touch. Here in New Hampshire, 1 in 4 women will be sexually assaulted in their lifetime—the overwhelming majority of which will be raped before their 18th birthday. Most often, they are attacked by someone they know—frequently by someone they are related to. By not adding these basic, humane exceptions to this bill, the State of New Hampshire is revictimizing women and girls who are experiencing the most severe trauma there is. They are literally mandating childbirth of rape and incest victims.
Furthermore, the refusal to take into account fetal health is inexcusable and makes this bill overwhelmingly cruel. Passage of this bill without this exception the State-ordered mandate that women carry a fetus that will not survive. This legislation is an anti-liberty, extreme, and highly-partisan solution to a problem that just doesn’t exist in New Hampshire. Decisions made during a difficult and complicated pregnancy are complex, deeply emotional, and deeply private - which is why doctors and patients are best positioned to weigh all the factors and make the best decision they can. These decisions are not made lightly or hastily.
This vote by Republicans is unconscionable and only puts on display how zealously extreme and out of touch they really are.”
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