Peters Joins Colleagues in Introducing Legislation to Restore and Protect Americans’ Right to Abortion Nationwide As We Mark 3rd Anniversary of Supreme Court Overturning Roe V. Wade

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI) joined his colleagues in introducing the Women’s Health Protection Act of 2025, legislation to guarantee access to abortion across the country and restore the right to reproductive health care for millions of Americans. The bill was introduced on the third anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court repealing Roe v. Wade, a decision that stripped Americans’ access to vital health care and denied many women the freedom to make their own, private health care decisions. 

“Three years ago, the conservative majority of the Supreme Court took away the constitutional right to abortion, stripping access to reproductive health care from millions of Americans and putting countless women’s lives in danger,” said Senator Peters. “It’s unacceptable that women today have fewer rights than their mothers and grandmothers did. The Women’s Health Protection Act would restore the fundamental right to choose, and ensure that women in every state can make private, personal health care decisions, without interference from politicians and judges.” 

As a result of the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, millions of Americans are being denied or delayed access to necessary and potentially life-saving treatment, including for ectopic pregnancies and miscarriage management, because of new legal risks to patients and providers. The harms caused by these abortion restrictions fall heaviest on populations that already experience inequities, including people with low incomes, people of color, immigrants, young people, people with disabilities, and those living in rural and other medically underserved areas. Since the Dobbs decision, 19 [SB1] [FB2] states have banned abortion or severely restricted women from being able to access the procedure, leaving one in three[SB3] [FB4]  American women without access to safe, legal abortion care. [FB5] 

While Michiganders voted in November 2022 to enshrine the right to an abortion in the state’s constitution, the Women’s Health Protection Act would establish federal rights for patients and providers to protect access to an abortion and create protections against medically unnecessary restrictions that undermine Americans’ access to health care.

Specifically, the Women’s Health Protection Act would:

• Prohibit states from imposing restrictions that jeopardize access to abortion earlier in pregnancy, including many of the state-level restrictions in place prior to Dobbs, such as arbitrary waiting periods, medically unnecessary mandatory ultrasounds, or requirements to provide medically inaccurate information.
• Ensure that later in pregnancy, states cannot limit access to abortion if it would jeopardize the life or health of the mother.
• Protect the ability to travel out of state for an abortion, which has become increasingly common in recent years.

Peters has been a strong advocate for protecting access to essential reproductive health care and the right of all Americans to make health care decisions privately with their doctors and family. Last year, Peters spoke on the Senate floor to urge his colleagues to support the Access to Family Building Act, legislation Peters cosponsored that would protect IVF treatment. Peters also spoke on the Senate floor in support of the Right to Contraception Act, legislation Peters cosponsored that would guarantee the right to access contraceptives. Peters also joined his colleagues last Congress in introducing the Women’s Health Protection Act of 2023. 

###