Source document: https://docs-lawep.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/1696596966526.pdf (United States)
MEMORANDUM November 11, 2019 To: Members of the Committee on Oversight and Reform Fr: Majority Staff Re: Hearing on “Examining State Efforts to Undermine Reproductive Health Care” On Thursday, November 14, 2019, at 2:00 pm in room 2154 of the Rayburn House Office Building, the Committee will hold a hearing to examine state actions—including by the State of Missouri—to restrict access to comprehensive reproductive health care services, including abortion, and the health and economic effects of those restrictions.
I.

BACKGROUND State governments have pursued policies that restrict access to comprehensive reproductive health services for individuals seeking care.
These measures—which include the criminalization of abortion and unnecessary requirements on patients, clinics, and providers— have reduced access to critical medical services across the United States.1 People of color, low- income individuals, and LGBTQ people have been disproportionately impacted by these restrictions.2 In the State of Missouri, a combination of policies has made the state one of six with just one remaining provider of abortion services.
Currently, Missouri remains at risk of becoming the first state in the country without a single abortion provider.3 1 Missouri Could Become the First State with Zero Abortion Clinics.

How Did We Get Here?, Vox (May 31, 2019) (online at www.vox.com/2019/5/30/18644611/missouri-last-abortion-clinic-2019-planned-parenthood).
2 Recent Abortion Bans Will Impact Poor People and People of Color Most, Vox (May 18, 2019) (online at www.vox.com/first-person/2019/5/18/18630514/missouri-alabama-abortion-ban-2019-racism); Abortion Is An LGTBQ Issue, Too, Advocates Stress, NBC News (Jan. 22, 2018) (online at www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc- out/abortion-lgbtq-issue-too-advocates-stress-n839966).

3 These 6 States Have Only 1 Abortion Clinic Left.


Missouri Could Become the First with Zero, CNN (June 21, 2019) (online at www.cnn.com/2019/05/29/health/six-states-with-1-abortion-clinic-map-trnd/index.html).

II.

HEARING PURPOSE The purpose of the hearing is to examine how state policies—like those in Missouri—are impacting residents’ access to comprehensive reproductive health care services, including abortion.
The hearing will also examine how the Trump Administration’s sustained and systemic attacks on reproductive health have emboldened state actions, and it will explore the federal government’s role in preserving access to reproductive health care services for patients across the United States.

III.
III.

WITNESSES Fatima Goss Graves President and Chief Executive Officer National Women’s Law Center Marcela Howell Founder and President/Chief Executive Officer In Our Own Voice Additional Witnesses TBD Staff contacts: Miles Lichtman and Jennifer Gaspar at (202) 225-5051.

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