Houston TX—Today, Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher (TX-07) released the following statement after ProPublica investigative reporting found that at least two pregnant women, including Josseli Barnica in Houston, died after doctors delayed emergency care as a result of S.B. 8.
“Josseli Barnica should be alive today,” said Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher. “Her story is heartbreaking and infuriating. The law that denied her access the health care she needed urgently—S.B. 8—is neither pro-life nor pro-family. It is anti-science and anti-woman. This cruel law, which restricts doctors’ ability to care for their patients and simultaneously empowers total strangers to intervene in these matters, is an affront to all Texans. And it is important to remember, this law was enacted and this tragedy took place before the Dobbs decision overturned Roe v. Wade. It demonstrates the peril Texans—and all Americans—face when extreme, unchecked, and uninvolved politicians substitute their judgment for the judgment of the people whose lives are at stake—here, lost—in these moments. Miscarriage is common, and miscarriage management should not be the job of the Texas Legislature.
“Congress must act to restore the rights of Americans in every state, including my home state of Texas, to make their own decisions about their bodies, their families, and their futures,” continued Congresswoman Fletcher. “But that will not happen if Republicans control the House, the Senate, or the White House. Indeed, the opposite is true: national Republican leaders have supported laws like this one and a nationwide ban. With voting taking place now, it is essential that Americans understand that our freedom to make our own decisions, and our ability to get the health care we need, is on the ballot. Our laws and lawmakers failed Josseli Barnica, as they have women across the country. We can begin to prevent further tragedies with our votes. Undoing these cruel laws will be harder than it should be, but we must continue the work to restore the health, privacy, dignity, and freedom of women and families in Texas and across our country.”
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Now in her third term in Congress, Fletcher was first elected to represent Texas’ Seventh Congressional District in 2018, becoming the first Democrat in more than 50 years and the first woman ever to represent TX-07.
