[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 133 (Thursday, July 29, 2021)]
[House]
[Pages H4254-H4255]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                SPENDING BILL WITHOUT THE HYDE AMENDMENT

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
Massachusetts (Ms. Clark) for 5 minutes.
  Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Madam Speaker, I rise today to celebrate 
the appropriations package we will pass this week because this document 
respects the dignity and humanity of women in this country and around 
the world.
  For the first time in over 40 years, the Appropriations Committee 
passed a spending bill without the Hyde amendment. For decades, the 
Hyde amendment has prevented women of color and low-income people from 
receiving basic healthcare. Hyde forces one in four women under 
Medicaid to carry a pregnancy to term.
  Twenty percent of the women in this country rely on Medicaid, 
including half of all American people living below the Federal poverty 
line, and millions of women of color. Yet, they are denied their 
constitutional right to healthcare, including an abortion.
  This is discrimination. The legal right to an abortion is meaningless 
if

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you are unable to afford one. Abortion is healthcare. The legal right 
to an abortion is based on access, and that should not be denied based 
on your income or insurance coverage.
  Budgets are documents that represent our values, and that is why I am 
so proud to put forward a spending package that rejects Hyde, and also 
provides a directive to the VA to implement a comprehensive sexual 
assault and harassment policy, $1.2 billion for maternal and child 
health, a repeal of the restrictive Helms amendment and global and 
domestic gag rules, and so much more.
  This is a good day for women here and around the globe. I thank Chair 
DeLauro and I thank the millions of activists who fought to make this 
moment a reality. We will continue our march for equity shoulder to 
shoulder with you.

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