Heinrich Statement On Draft Opinion In Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) released the following statement on a draft majority opinion in the U.S. Supreme Court case Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization: 

“The Supreme Court’s draft opinion is a direct threat to a woman’s right to make her own health care decisions and a dangerous step toward dismantling every American’s right to privacy. 

“A woman has a right to make her own health care decisions without the government getting between her and her medical providers. That right shouldn’t depend on what state she lives in or how far she can afford to drive. But right now, that all hangs in the balance.

“The Court’s decision to take this case and the draft majority opinion make two things clear. The Senate must urgently pass the Women’s Health Protection Act to codify reproductive rights. And the radical-conservative majority of the United States Supreme Court has chosen politics over our constitutional rights, and that cannot stand.”

Background:

• Senator Heinrich is a cosponsor of the Women’s Health Protection Act (WHPA), a bill that would protect the right to abortion throughout the United States.
• In September 2021, Senator Heinrich joined a bicameral amicus brief in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, urging the Supreme Court to uphold nearly 50 years of precedent in Roe v. Wade and protect the constitutional right to abortion care.