The president is a very engaged, we are all hopeful. Todays hearing, is the fourth i have held in to just to investigate the decades long effort to bulldoze abortion rights by republican politicians. Since the Supreme Court decision in dobbs versus jackson, republicanled states have pushed to impose draconian abortion bands that take away in bans that take away womens rights. With more bands taking effect nearly every week. Just last friday, a abortion ban in arizona that was originally passed in 1901. A law banning abortion from more than a century ago, before women won the right to vote is now back in effect. Republicans are now turning back the clock on womens rights. Back to a time when women were not viewed as equal citizens, and when they had no control over their own bodies. More than 33 million women of reproductive age live in states hostile to abortion. Most of these states, abortion is severely restricted or outright band. This means that roughly half of the women in america live in states that robbed them of their fundamental freedom to make decisions about their bodies. This stands in stark contrast to other countries, other world communities, like ireland, i urgent tina, argentina, new zealand and mexico all of which are expanding womens rights to abortion. Today, we will hear directly from a patient, and doctors who will share their firsthand account of accessing abortion care. The barriers being erected in their states, and the harms caused right taking away this fundamental right. We will hear that abortion bands prevent doctors from exercising their professional judgment about what their patients need, out of fear of being charged with the crime. Some doctors have reported having to wait until patients are close to death until they can provide emergency care. For example, one woman in texas who suffered a miscarriage was forced to carry fetal remains for two weeks because doctors denied her care due to texas abortion ban. Another texas woman had to prove that an infection was killing her, before doctors would agree that she was in enough danger to terminate her lethal pregnancy. This is horrifying. Republicans are not done yet. It turns out, republicans arent satisfied with states banning abortion, they want to ban abortion nationwide. Earlier this month, senator Lindsey Graham, introduced a bill to ban abortion everywhere in the United States, after 15 weeks in the house, nearly 100 republicans, including the Ranking Member, as many republicans on this committee, have cosponsored this extreme bill. And a new memo released by the committee today reveals that during just this congress alone, Congressional Republicans have introduced more than 50 separate measures to ban or restrict abortion. You seek you see where their priorities are, right here with these 50 different bills. Some of them put doctors in prison. Some of them ban travel from state to state if you seek abortion. Some are just outright bands outright ban. They were all measures to restrict abortion. Republicans are showing us, the americans, the america that they envision. It limits womens freedom, and imposes government control over our bodies and choices. It is an america where it where a politician can force a woman to give birth against her will regardless of the consequences for her health, her will and her family. This chilling American Vision is not with the American People want. The majority of the people in the United States support a womans right to choose. They support abortion rights. That support is only made stronger since the extremist, dangerous, Supreme Court decision in dobbs. While republicans are pushing to criminalize abortion nationwide, the democrats are fighting to protect the freedom of every person to make their own medical decisions. Without interference from the state, and to protect the patient and doctor personal relationship. That is why democrats pass the Womens Health protection act which would establish a federal right to abortion. And ensuring access to abortion act. Which would safeguard a patients right to travel across state lines to obtain abortion care. Unfortunately, republicans overwhelmingly oppose both bills. And democrats in Congress Stand with the American People, we stand with women who want the autonomy to make their own Health Care Decisions about their bodies, abortion is Necessary Health care. It must be accessible to all. We will not stand by while that freedom is stripped away from us. I want to thank each and every one of our witnesses for sharing their stories and for the bravery in coming before the committee today. They are doing a Tremendous Service to their communities and to the nation, i now yield to representative highs who is representing representative coomer for his Opening Statement. I would like to begin by echoing chairwomans thoughts and concerns for those in harms way and florida and elsewhere. With the hurricane, truly when one state in this country suffers, we all suffer with them. Our prayers, our concern, and our aid, certainly are with those who have been effected. 50 years ago, and in roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court tragically strayed from the text of the constitution and took away from the American People the power to decide the question of abortion for themselves. This constitutionally illiterate decision resulted in the death and over 63 million unborn americans. As justins Justice Byron wright wrote in his dissent, decision for the most part should be left to the people and the political processes that the people have devised to govern their affairs. This summer, the Supreme Court heeded the wisdom of Justice White and justice right and returned that decision to the American People, i would underscore the word moral, spiritual, and religious issue for kaplans millions for countless millions of americans who hold to a biblical worldview on life. Those that hold life is precious that it is created by god, i certainly count myself among those millions of americans. In fact, the people like jacob and esau, simpson, jeremiah, king david, all that the scripture references were known in the womb before they were born. For us or companies to have policies or requirements to force people to violate their deeply held religious convictions is wrong, whether its be forcing them to use their tax dollars to pay for abortions or whether it be forcing individuals in the medical industry to assist in abortions when it goes against their religious beliefs or be fired if they do not do so. It is wrong for us to go down that path. Putting that aside, this hearing today, rather than engage honestly on the merits of politics and law and science, democrats are fear mongering and spreading misinformation. The New York Times published a piece encouraging democrats to, quote, lead into the politics of fear. Democrats are trying to ignore the science or spin it for political purposes. If we are following the science, modern medical advances make it clear that unborn babies are just that. Precious human lives that we must protect. The ultrasound provides the means to understand more about unborn babies than at any other point in history, and here are a few examples. Within the first four weeks of pregnant sea, the baby develops a heartbeat pregnancy, the baby develops a heartbeat. This is not merely a manufactured sound. It is an ultrasound. Referring to an unborn babys heartbeat as cardiac activity does not change the fact it is another attempt to deny what we are talking about, and that is a human life. As early as 12 weeks, a baby can feel pain, which is why at the seizure anesthesia is admitted during a field surgery. The only cases when anesthesia is not administered during an abortion. At 15 weeks, all of the babys major urgent organs are formed. Babies are born as early as 22 weeks and survive at rates of nearly 60 . Recently, scientists recorded evidence that unborn babies respond with facial reactions to flavor of foods eaten by their mothers. It is fascinating. Over the past several decades, scientific advancements have provided us with insights into the development of human baby in its mothers womb. Unfortunately, democrats outright deny the science and spin false narratives to avoid one unmistakable effect. Unborn babies are human beings and they deserve the right to life. Thankfully, the American People did not support the mike krant radical legislation like hr to 96. Democrats radical legislation like hr 296. This is a radical position that is so extreme at putting the democrats on poor on par with dictatorships like north karina north korea and china. Poland conducted after the Dobbs Decision found that 72 of americans, including 75 of women oppose abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy. That is why republicans are fighting for the will of the American People. Lets call this hearing today what it really is, nothing other than a desperate political ploy. It is a ploy to distract the American People from issues they are facing like skyrocketing inflation, skyrocketing crime, the border crisis, Students Learning loss from school closures, the fentanyl crisis, and so on. The hearing today is a ploy to distract from that but also an attempt to continue fear mongering against policies and to distract what this issue of abortion versus life is about. Yet democrats continue to distract from the reality that they have created the American People across this country are suffering from. Fortunately, this political ploy will join a long list of democrat failures. It is time today in this hearing to stop denying science. Unborn children are human beings. They deserve the right to live. I yield back, thank you. Rep. Maloney we will introduce our witnesses. First we will hear from kelsey lee, then dr. Verma. A fellow from the positions for Reproductive Health. Then we will hear from dr. Kumar. Finally, we will hear from jocelyn thrive, president of the National Partnership for women and families. The witnesses will be unneeded so we may swear you in. An muted so we may swear you in. Do you swear to tell the truth and nothing but the truth, so help . You god . . The record reflect that they answered in the affirmative. Thank you. Your written statements will be made part of the permit part of congress. Miss lee, you are recognized for your testimony. Thank you, chairwoman maloney and members of the committee for inviting me to speak with you today. My name is kelsey lee and i came from pittsburgh to tell you about the portion that i had. 22 weeks into a wanted pregnancy. I had baby names on the shortlist, a pinterest board full of ideas on how my two children, my threeyearold and my future baby, could share a room in our closing because he has. At every appointment, it seemed that my pregnancy was healthy. But when i saw him on ultrasound for the first time at 20 weeks, six days into my pregnancy, what i saw was not compatible with life as i define it. Healthy, quality, free of suffering. He was not moving. His limbs and neck were deformed. His umbilical cord had a structural anomaly. If my pregnancy continued, he likely would not have had the ability to swallow. He may not have been able to breathe and he would have broken during delivery, no matter the method. So i did what i knew was right for my son, myself, and my family, and chose to end my pregnancy. I could not and would not carry my son for four more months to give birth to him knowing that his life would be filled with pain and suffering. The current law allows abortion 20 weeks into pregnancy, so i was able to access abortion care within the legal window and at a hospital 10 minutes from my home. Just six weeks later while i was still grieving and healing, i stood before cameras and pled with the Pennsylvania Legislature not to pass a bill that would ban abortion at 20 weeks, a bill that would have banned my abortion and stripped me of my privacy in my most vulnerable moments. We stopped that legislation in its tracks a year later when the bill came up again. I went from office to office in harrisburg asking lawmakers to support people like me. Enough lawmakers listened and understood the gravity of their responsibility that we stop the bill from becoming the law. Pennsylvanias abortion laws are far from perfect. Among the demeaning questions, i was subjected to, and offer to mail me a week by week Fetal Development guide. You can imagine how difficult that was. But because lawmakers listened to their constituents, in this new reality, pennsylvania is a beacon for people from other states. I now work at Allegheny Reproductive Health center where we provide crowd abortion care. I help patients find the resources they need. The calls i field on a given day are from people in different states because the abortion bands across this country cannot and will not stop people from needing an abortion. No one has to convince me or anyone else at our clinic of their worthiness of an abortion. They each have the right to control their own body. Never, not a once in my years of advocating for Abortion Access, have a talk to someone who deserved their abortion less than i did. The people who you represent do not want abortion to be a legal. Your constituents are mothers like me, young people with dreams, and we are all citizens who should be allowed to make our own decisions about our health, our bodies, and our futures. In this moment, where u. S. Lawmakers have been given the green light to take away our power of our most personal decisions, i want to close by asking you this question. Who are you going to be . Will you sit in judgment of people who are pregnant without knowing them or their circumstances . Or will you listen to me, to us, and be the compassion that our country desperately needs right now . Thank you. Rep. Maloney thank you very much. Dr. Verma, you are now recognized for your testimony. Thank you. Good morning chairwoman maloney, Ranking Member kolmar come and distinguish members of the committee. I am a boardcertified fellowship trained gynecologist who provides full Reproductive Health care. I am part of a network of physicians across the country working to improve access to comprehensive Reproductive Health care. I am also a proud southerner. I was born and raised in North Carolina and currently provide care in georgia. Growing up, i saw firsthand the devastating impact of restrictions on contraception and abortion care in the lives of real people. My friends, family, and people in my community. There are the reason i am here before you today. I became a doctor and ob gyn because of my drive to take care of people without judgment throughout the course of their lives regardless of their health care needs. For me, that commitment includes talking people through their first pap smears, delivering their babies, and supporting them as they decide to continue or and their pregnancy. There i am caring for someone who is ready to build a family, already parenting, or focused on their education and career, all of my patients have something in common. They are making thoughtful decisions about their health and wellbeing and deserve highquality care, including abortion care, regardless of who they are or where they live. The Supreme Courts decision to overturn constitutional right to abortion care has wreaked havoc across the country, including georgia, as it has enacted severe abortion bands and restrictions. I am terrified for my community in georgia where most abortions have been banned very early in pregnancy at approximately six weeks. This is before some people know they are pregnant and long before many of my patients deceive diagnoses of dangerous medical conditions or fetal anomalies that complicate their presidencies pregnancies and endanger the health. Because the law is not based in medicine or science, im forced to turn away patients. Imagine looking someone in the eye and saying, i have all of the tools to help you, but our states politicians have told me i cannot. Imagine having to tell someone, you are sick but not sick enough to receive care in our state based on our laws narrow exceptions. As a doctor in georgia, i am being forced to grapple with these impossible situations more and more. These directly violate the medical expertise i gave through years of training and the oh thigh took oath i took. I have seen how dramatically the care that i provide to people and the people are able to receive very based on the laws of the states. In the states where i do not have to deal with medically unnecessary restrictions on Abortion Access, i can focus on doing what i am trained to do, providing safe and evidencebased care. I understand abortion care can be, health care and life can be. But i am here today to tell you that abortion is necessary, compassionate, essential health care. It should not be singled out for exclusion or have additional Financial Burdens placed upon it. The retractions restrictions on abortion care have long reaching consequences, deepening inequities and worsening Health Outcomes. When an abortion is difficult to access, hump. Access, complicated Health Outcomes can happen. This includes harming the over will health and wellbeing of people across the country. As a provider of comprehensive Reproductive Health care, i know people are