(Washington, D.C.) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (LHHS), released the following statement on the release of the FY22 LHHS funding bill which does not include the Hyde amendment—an unjust federal abortion coverage restriction for those who depend on Medicaid and other government-sponsored plans for their health care. The funding bill would also invest $500 million in the Title X family planning program, a 75 percent and $214 million increase above FY21—surpassing the investment President Biden called for in his budget proposal.
“Every single person deserves to make their own decisions about pregnancy and parenting—but right now, the unacceptable reality is that the choices available to you still depend on your income, your zip code, or how you get your health insurance. Right now, too many people can’t exercise their right to an abortion because of federal abortion coverage restrictions, or can’t afford the family planning services they need. That’s unfair and unjust—especially for women who have low incomes and people of color. We’ve got to do better.
“That’s why I’m proud our bill would finally do away with the Hyde and Weldon amendments, bringing us one step closer to ensuring the right to abortion isn’t just a right in name only.
“Critically, after years of cuts and interference with investments in family planning and maternal health, this bill also makes historic investments in Title X family planning services, so patients can get birth control, STI testing, cancer screenings, and more, while fighting our country’s unacceptable maternal mortality rate with increased, dedicated funding for maternal health.
“With reproductive and abortion rights under attack from every angle—and with Roe hanging in the balance at the Supreme Court—now is the time to lay out a clear vision for a future in which each person’s right to make deeply personal decisions about pregnancy and parenting is protected, and in which reproductive health and rights are not up for debate. That’s the future I’m determined to keep fighting for every single day.”
Senator Murray is a leader in the fight to ensure access to reproductive health care, including abortion. She recently praised the Biden Administration’s new Title X rule, which overturned the disastrous Trump gag rule. She is also a lead cosponsor of the EACH Act, alongside Senator Duckworth, Senator Hirono and Congresswoman Lee, which ends restrictions on abortion for patients with government sponsored health care plans and help ensure everyone can get the reproductive health care they need—no matter their income, race, zip code, or how they get health care.