IV
119THCONGRESS
1
STSESSION H. CON. RES. 18
Expressing support for the recognition of March 10, 2025, as ‘‘Abortion
Provider Appreciation Day’’.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MARCH10, 2025
Ms. P
RESSLEY(for herself, Ms. WILLIAMSof Georgia, Mr. GOLDMANof New
York, Mrs. R
AMIREZ, Ms. TOKUDA, Ms. VELA´ZQUEZ, Mr. SWALWELL,
Mr. J
OHNSONof Georgia, Ms. DEGETTE, Mr. NADLER, and Ms. NOR-
TON) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred
to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Com-
mittee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by
the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall with-
in the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Expressing support for the recognition of March 10, 2025,
as ‘‘Abortion Provider Appreciation Day’’.
Whereas March 10 has been established as a day to show ap-
preciation for the essential, high-quality care that abor-
tion providers and all staff provide to their communities
and those traveling to their communities, and to celebrate
their courage, compassion, and dedication to their work;
Whereas March 10 was selected for ‘‘Abortion Provider Ap-
preciation Day’’ in honor of Dr. David Gunn, who was
killed on March 10, 1993, outside his abortion clinic in
Pensacola, Florida, by a White supremacist and anti-
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abortion extremist in the first known instance of the
murder of an abortion provider;
Whereas abortions are provided in-person and through tele-
health by facilities such as independent clinics, Planned
Parenthood health care centers, hospitals, and private of-
fices of doctors, and all of the staff working at those fa-
cilities are essential to ensuring patients receive needed
care;
Whereas, on June 24, 2022, the Supreme Court of the
United States erroneously overturned Roe v. Wade, 410
U.S. 113 (1973), in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health
Organization, 597 U.S. 215 (2022) (referred to in this
preamble as ‘‘the Dobbs decision’’), reversing decades of
legal precedent affirming the right to an abortion and
unleashing devastation on an already precarious abortion
access landscape;
Whereas States across the United States have moved to re-
strict access to abortion care, and 19 States have banned
some or all access to an abortion as of March 2025;
Whereas, because of State abortion bans and restrictions,
scores of clinics and health care centers in already under-
served areas and maternal health deserts have closed,
forcing more patients to remain pregnant against their
will or to travel out-of-State for abortion care, increasing
wait times, straining already thin resources, and pushing
people farther and farther away from their homes;
Whereas abortion providers and all staff play a critical role
in a world where it has become increasingly difficult for
individuals to receive essential and time-sensitive care
once those individuals have made decisions that are right
for their bodies, lives, and futures;
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Whereas abortion providers and all staff help to ensure that
all individuals who can become pregnant can make their
own decisions about their bodies and their pregnancies,
and support the decisions of their patients by treating
them with dignity, empathy, compassion, and respect, de-
spite numerous challenges due to abortion bans and re-
strictions;
Whereas abortion providers and all staff play an essential
role within the reproductive justice framework, which was
created by 12 Black women in 1994, who formulated a
human rights framework that demands every person has
the human right to bodily autonomy, which includes the
right to choose if, when, and how to have children and
the right to parent children in safe and sustainable com-
munities;
Whereas individuals seeking abortion care across the United
States also rely on the work of abortion funds and prac-
tical support organizations to access abortion care for
themselves and their families;
Whereas abortion funds and practical support organizations
that rely on donations face increasing demand following
the Dobbs decision as individuals are forced to travel
longer distances, find childcare or lodging, and raise
money to cover the ever-increasing costs of an abortion
and wraparound support;
Whereas the network of abortion funds, clinics, providers,
and supporters that work to ensure access to abortion is
being strained beyond capacity;
Whereas restrictions on abortion care have far-reaching con-
sequences that deepen existing inequities and worsen
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health outcomes for pregnant people, people giving birth,
and their families;
Whereas people who are denied abortion care are more likely
to experience high blood pressure and other serious med-
ical conditions during the end of pregnancy, remain in re-
lationships where interpersonal violence is present, and
experience poverty;
Whereas research shows that States that have more abortion
restrictions are also States that have poorer maternal
health outcomes;
Whereas the effects of the Dobbs decision were immediate
and disastrous, with 12 States completely banning access
to abortion care as of March 2025;
Whereas more than 25,000,000 women of reproductive age,
plus more trans and nonbinary people, do not have access
to abortion where they live;
Whereas restricting and banning access to abortion care—
(1) limits the ability of current and future providers
to obtain necessary education and training in abortion
care;
(2) exposes the remaining abortion providers and all
staff to increased levels of harassment, violence, and po-
litically motivated restrictions; and
(3) creates and increases the out-of-pocket costs and
logistical burdens that patients face to get care to a level
that is sometimes insurmountable, forcing patients to re-
main pregnant;
Whereas the 2022 Violence and Disruption Report of the Na-
tional Abortion Federation found an alarming escalation
in incidents of obstruction, vandalism, and trespassing at
abortion clinics, with abortion providers reporting an
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alarming rate of death threats and threats of harm, and
documented 218 of such incidents in 2022;
Whereas Black, indigenous, and other providers and patients
of color face heightened levels of threats, harassment,
and violence as compared to their White counterparts;
Whereas the current administration has emboldened individ-
uals and groups to continue to harass and threaten the
ability of abortion providers and all staff to serve their
patients;
Whereas the Dobbs decision has emboldened antiabortion in-
dividuals and groups to continue to harass providers and
the patients they care for;
Whereas the Dobbs decision threatens the ability of abortion
providers and all staff to serve their patients; and
Whereas, in the face of multifaceted attacks on their work,
abortion providers remain an essential and valued part of
their communities, providing high-quality, compassionate,
and necessary health care, and courageously delivering
that care despite pressures, restrictions, political inter-
ference, and violent threats to their personal safety: Now,
therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 1
concurring), That Congress— 2
(1) recognizes ‘‘Abortion Provider Appreciation 3
Day’’ to celebrate the courage, compassion, and 4
high-quality care that abortion providers and staff 5
offer to patients and their families across the United 6
States; 7
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(2) lauds communities across the United States 1
who are proud to be home to abortion providers and 2
staff; 3
(3) affirms the commitment of Congress to en-4
suring the safety of abortion providers, the ability of 5
abortion providers to continue providing the essen-6
tial care their patients need, and the right of pa-7
tients to access abortion care no matter where they 8
live, free from fear of violence, criminalization, or 9
stigma; 10
(4) condemns the decisions of the Supreme 11
Court of the United States, as well as the actions of 12
the current administration and antiabortion extrem-13
ists, to limit and stigmatize abortion care, which has 14
had a devastating impact on abortion providers and 15
the communities they care for, threatening the work 16
and livelihoods of providers and staff, and worsening 17
the strain on providers who work in States where 18
abortion is still available; and 19
(5) declares a vision for a future liberated from 20
all abortion restrictions and bans, where everyone 21
has full access to the care they need without fear of 22
penalty or stigma, and affirms the commitment of 23
Congress to working toward that goal in partnership 24
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with providers, patients, advocates, and their com-1
munities. 2
Æ
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