Introduction
Representatives and Senators may sponsor bills related to various issues, such as health, security, and international affairs. Health is a rather important topic, as different legislations related to the subject may either positively or negatively affect the topic. In the following text, I will review two bills sponsored by members of Congress and discuss the one I support and the one that I oppose and explain why.
Discussion
Senator Ted Cruz is sponsoring the PAUSE Act of 2022, bill S.4088. The objective of the bill is to maintain immigration restrictions that were implemented by public health emergency officials as a means of preventing COVID-19 cases brought from other countries (GovTrack, n. d.). The problem with that bill is that it does not consider the measures that were actively being taken by some countries in the wake of the pandemic. A better idea would be to provide immigrants with the necessary means of COVID-19 prevention, if possible. That way, in case a person did not have access to FDA-approved vaccination, they would be allowed to do it here.
Representative Lizzie Fletcher sponsors Bill H. R. 8297, which is related to abortion access. Its goal is to prevent anyone acting under state law from interfering with medical professionals providing pregnancy termination services to out-of-state individuals (GovTrack, n. d.). This bill is rather important as some states may ban abortion in the process, leaving some people with the need to go to another state to seek medical assistance on the matter. If this opportunity will be removed, they may resort to self-inflicted abortion, which is far more dangerous than the same procedure being provided by a healthcare professional.
Conclusion
In conclusion, I oppose Bill S.4088 regarding immigrants and COVID restrictions and support Bill H.R.8297 related to interference with abortions for out-of-state residents. I believe that the PAUSE Act does not consider the preventative measures that were taken by some countries during the pandemic. Instead, I would prefer immigrants to be provided with the means to prevent the virus, especially if they lacked access to an FDA-approved vaccine in their country. I support Bill H.R. 8297 because I believe that it may prevent self-inflicted abortions. Some people may live in states that can ban pregnancy termination. This makes out-of-state abortion their only safe option, otherwise, they will do it themselves, resulting in serious health complications.
References
GovTrack. (n.d.). H.R. 8297: Ensuring access to abortion Act of 2022. GovTrack.us. Web.
GovTrack. (n.d.). PAUSE Act of 2022 (S. 4088). GovTrack.us. Web.