PA Legislators Seek To Codify 'Roe' Into Law In Pennsylvania

HARRISBURG — A team of state legislators have announced that they are planning to introduce legislation that would codify Roe v. Wade into law in the Keystone State.

The seven state senators, six of who are from southeastern Pennsylvania, announced this week their measure to codify into state law the personal right of citizens to make their own decisions about healthcare and reproduction matters, including access to safe and legal abortions.

The move was announced soon after the United States Supreme Court overturned the longstanding precedent offered by the case of Roe v. Wade, in which a previous Supreme Court determined abortion to be a constitutionally protected activity throughout the country.

"The Supreme Court decision handed down on Friday was not made in the interest of the people and shows that the highest court in our nation has a majority that is being run by harmful right wing special interests," State Sen. Katie Muth, a Democrat representing parts of Montgomery, Chester and Berks Counties, said in a statement. "If we cannot trust the Court to protect the rights of Pennsylvanians, then it is up to us in the state legislature to defend our rights to make decisions about our own bodies. We cannot and we will never back down in the fight to protect our rights, our bodies, and our right to choice."

The other legislators who co-signed onto the sponsorship memo for the proposed legislation are State Senators Amanda Cappelletti, D-Montgomery/Delaware, Lindsey Williams, D-Allegheny, Maria Collett, D-Montgomery/Bucks, Judy Schwank, D-Berks, Christine Tartaglione, D-Philadelphia and Carolyn Comitta, D-Chester.

The other senators said they agree with Muth that it is up to the legislature to now take action to protect women's freedom of choice in light of the overturning of Roe.

"While abortion currently remains safe and legal in Pennsylvania, we must take steps to keep it that way," Comitta said in a statement. "In overturning Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court showed just how fragile protections for women's health, women's rights, and women's choice are."

Comitta said codifying those protections into state law makes sense, since a majority of Pennsylvanians already believe abortion should be legal.

An actual bill has not yet been proposed, the senators said, since the language is currently being drafted, but plans are to officially introduce a measure sometime in the near future.

Williams noted that abortion only remains legal in Pennsylvania because the current Democratic governor, Tom Wolf, has vetoed anti-choice bills that had been introduced by Republicans in the General Assembly.

"The time is now to codify Roe into state law to ensure that reproductive healthcare remains safe and accessible for future generations," Williams said in a statement.

Josh Shapiro, the Democratic nominee for governor, has already gone on record stating that he will veto any anti-abortion measures that make it to his desk if he wins November's election contest.

Collett, who in addition to being a senator is also a Registered Nurse, released her own statement, calling the recent Supreme Court decision a "rollback of our fundamental rights to bodily autonomy."

"This ruling could be devastating to Pennsylvanians, but it does not have to be," Collett stated. "Our legislature must codify Roe v. Wade and ensure safe, legal, and accessible reproductive care for everyone, regardless of their income level or other social barriers."

The senators pointed to an April Franklin & Marshall College poll that showed only 16 percent of Pennsylvanians actually believe abortion should be illegal in all circumstances.

They also noted that there is legitimate concern about keeping abortion legal in Pennsylvania, since some in the Republican-controlled majority in the General Assembly are already planning to put forth legislation that would outlaw the practice in the commonwealth.

"We can't allow the people of this commonwealth's personal health care decisions to be made by a vocal minority," Schwank said in a statement.

Tartaglione said in a statement that last week's Supreme Court decision represented an "unprecedented repeal of the rights of women in America by activist justices acting against the interest of the majority of Americans."

"This legislation will ensure women retain the right to safe abortions and protects women from having the government interfere in the private decision-making process between her and her healthcare team," Tartaglione stated.