 Good afternoon. I'm Representative Dan Frankel and I'm here today with many of my colleagues to talk to you about House Bill 1948, which is scheduled to be voted upon today. House Bill 1948 is a very troubling bill that would ban abortion after 20 weeks and outlaw a very safe, common abortion procedure. I'm honored to be here today in support of many brave women who have come to share their personal stories with us, stories that speak to the dangers of House Bill 1948. I'm also honored to be joined by Governor Tom Wolf and Cecile Richards, President of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, as well as many of my colleagues in the General Assembly and many other advocates here who are with us as well. House Bill 1948 was introduced only 10 days ago. It was the language that Bill was available to us last Friday afternoon, two weeks ago Friday afternoon, and run literally the following Monday morning on a committee meeting off the House floor. No transparency, no hearings, no discussion. The women you'll hear from today were never given a chance to speak on the issue, never given an opportunity to share their stories. We're here today in support of them, and we're here today to listen. To my colleagues who may still be undecided, I implore you to please listen carefully and keep an open mind. First, I'd like to introduce someone who has had a long history of supporting women's rights, including the fundamental right of choice, our Governor Tom Wolf. Thank you, Representative Frankel. I am proud to stand with you and with everyone here in opposition to House Bill 1948. This legislation would be a step back for women. This legislation would be a huge step back for Pennsylvania. This legislation would interfere with real lives of real people, and I want to thank Kelsey, Erica, and Karen. You're going to hear their stories, but this affects real people, real lives in Pennsylvania. So I'm here to stand with these women, and again, you're brave to be here to share your story, and I really appreciate that. I'm here to stand with you and with everyone in Pennsylvania who would be harmed, harmed by this legislation. If this legislation reaches my desk, let me just say I will veto it. If it passes the House, and if it does pass the House, I urge the Senate to reject it. So this is a bad bill for Pennsylvania. We cannot afford to allow this bill to go forward. Let me introduce now someone who is known to all of you, Cecile Richards, who is president of the Planned Parenthood Action Fund of the United States. Cecile. Thank you, Governor Wolf, for being such a champion for women and families across the state of Pennsylvania for your entire career, and thank you, Representative Frankel. There is no greater champion for women in Harrisburg than than Dan Frankel, and we're so grateful to have him as well as his colleagues standing here today on behalf of women and with Planned Parenthood, and for rallying his colleagues who defeat bills like the one we're here to talk about. I'm here today to support the women of Pennsylvania who would suffer if this law were put in place, including the brave women you're about to hear from who will tell their own personal stories. Planned Parenthood is proud to provide health care to 2.5 million people across the country every single year with quality, compassionate health care, and that includes safe and legal abortion access. We know that women are the safest and healthiest when decisions about their health care are made between them and their doctors. Politicians are the last people who should be making decisions about women's pregnancies. This bill doesn't make women safer. It actually puts them at risk. It forces women to navigate an unnecessary legal obstacle course when they should be able to focus on making the very best decisions for themselves and their families. This bill is part of attack on women all across the country from politicians who want to ban safe and legal abortion. At Planned Parenthood we have seen the devastating consequences that result when women and their families have to face legislation like this. In every other medical field we want doctors to use the very best medical evidence and their judgment about what is best for their patients. We would never allow politicians to force them to go against that judgment. Women deserve better than this bill and they deserve to have their voices heard when politicians push dangerous legislation like this. So I hope that everyone here in Harrisburg hears when these incredibly brave women Erika, Kelsey, and Karen share their own stories. Thank you for being here and I want to thank them for speaking up for women across the state of Pennsylvania. So we'll first hear from Kelsey. Thank you Cecile and thank you to Planned Parenthood for allowing me to be a part of today. I couldn't not be here. This issue is too important and too real for families like mine. February 17th 2016 just six weeks ago it was our 20-week ultrasound and my husband and I were excited. We expected to get cute ultrasound photos to share with our families and go home to tell our three-year-old son if he'd be getting a little brother or sister. Instead our ultrasound revealed devastating news news that I wish no parent should ever have to hear. News that rendered me speachlessly sobbing and made my husband physically ill. Our baby, our son, had severe muscle deformities in all his limbs and was showing very little if any movement. Our doctors explained to us that when all of a baby's limbs are affected like this it has become because of a systemic issue also affecting the very basic functions of life. Movement, swallowing, perhaps even breathing. These were severe fetal anomalies not compatible with life as we define it, life with any measure of quality. We were presented with our options, continue the pregnancy, do testing which might give a name to what we already knew would be terrible outcomes for our unborn son or end the pregnancy. I'm grateful that just six weeks ago I had these options available to me because had the legislature been moving this bill any earlier the choice would have no longer been my own. When I heard about HB 1948 my first response was a visceral one. My palms were sweaty and I felt sick to my stomach and I still do. My next response was to reach out to Planned Parenthood to say here's my story now tell me how I can help. I'm in disbelief that just weeks after my family and I endured such tragedy the Pennsylvania House is moving at breakneck speed on a bill which would strip a woman which would have stripped me of my choice during such a vulnerable time. More unbelievable to me is that though I've heard much rhetoric about the bill from its proponents they voted twice against hearing testimony from the public, testimony from medical experts like obstetricians and pediatricians, testimony from the people that this law would directly affect people like me and my husband. Ultimately our hearts and our heads led us to end the pregnancy and I had a D&E at 21 weeks six days. This is the toughest decision we have ever had to make but one which we knew and still know in our guts is what was right for our family. One I am grateful we were able to make for ourselves without outside interference. Throughout this terrible time we were supported unconditionally by our medical team and have been surrounded and loved by our friends and family and to each of you we are eternally grateful and it's because of your support that I have the strength to stand up here today to try to help other women and families. To representative Rapp and other co-sponsors of this bill for a moment put aside party lines. Ask yourself what would you want for a loved one if they were in our situation? What would you want for your niece, your daughter, your wife? I'd wish for them to feel loved and surrounded during such a grief filled time to have the space and the time they need to process such terrible news. I'd wish for them to have access to compassionate medical care and to have all of their options presented to them. I'd wish for them to have privacy in which to decide what is best for their unborn child and their families and above all I'd wish for them to be unconditionally supported in whatever difficult path they chose. If you two can agree that this is what every woman and family in the Commonwealth deserves then it's not too late. Please I urge you please vote no on HB 1948. And now it's my honor to introduce my new friend, fellow patient and mother Erica. In 2012 when I was excitedly expecting my first child my husband and I received devastating news. We were shocked to learn that our son Darby Joss never developed an airway. Fluid that should have been expelled from his body back into the womb was building up inside of his lungs expanding his chest cavity inverting his diaphragm and crushing his tiny heart. Determined to find a solution we spent the next several weeks consulting with the nation's foremost fetal surgeons attending numerous consultations. We dutifully scheduled fetal MRIs, echocardiograms, genetic tests and more ultrasounds. Unfortunately we were told that our son's condition was not only incredibly rare but also beyond repair. We were given three options. The first wait for him to go into heart failure in the womb as it was expected he would but this likely wouldn't happen for a month or two. The second carry to term and deliver a baby who would be brain dead never to gain consciousness, breathe on his own, cry out or have any awareness of our presence. The third terminate the pregnancy. Darby was deeply loved, deeply wanted and his very existence introduced me to the true meaning of being a parent sparing my child from suffering and taking it on myself instead. Though I wanted to try to carry to term to hold him in my arms to kiss his sweet face here was the reality of what his life would look like if he survived. Darby would live and likely die in a neonatal intensive care unit. He would never crawl into our beds after a nightmare, never be moved by a beautiful piece of music. He could never express fear or pain or sadness. Darby would be locked inside himself eternally alone. As our Darby simultaneously lived and died inside my body my husband and I decided to end the pregnancy. He would know only love from the beginning to the end of his short life. It was apparent to us that this was the most loving, conscientious, well informed and indeed parental decision that we could make to let him go. Not a day goes by that I don't grieve his loss. The death of your child in any stage is the death of your naivete, sense of safety and faith in a world that will give you what you deserve because you love so deeply and are a good person. The death of your child is the death of a piece of you, the piece that believed in itself in its health and the ability to grow and protect a baby within you in the hopes and dreams that your child represented. But in a situation I never could have predicted where I'd never had a choice for the spontaneous development of my son's syndrome I at least was allowed the decision to spare him an existence of prolonged pain or worse and for that choice my heartbreaking choice. I am grateful. Grateful and grieving until the day I die. I would like to now introduce you to my new brave friend Karen. Thank you for listening to me today with an open heart. This is actually the first time that I'm speaking publicly about this or speaking at all about this. Most of our family and friends actually don't know the extent of what we've been through. So in July of 2015 I became pregnant and to say I was thrilled was an understatement. My husband and I still newlyweds had been trying for about six months and we finally did our dreams for a family came to life with just two pink lines on a test. This being my first pregnancy I was nervous and nauseous for the entire first trimester. Because of my age I opted for advanced screening which ruled out any chromosomal abnormalities and confirmed the exciting news that we were having a girl. My husband still in a joyful days a few hours later asked me what am I going to do when she starts dating. By the time we got to the 20 week ultrasound we had named her Evelyn and spent hours just daydreaming about how wonderful she was going to be. I was feeling relaxed finally and excited to see my girl again. At her appointment I was happy to see a familiar face in the sonogram technician from last time. She had mentioned at the previous ultrasound that she couldn't get a measurement on Evelyn's legs because she had them tucked which is pretty normal for babies at that stage. She said it wasn't a big deal but I let her know that I sipped apple juice before arriving in an effort to get my stubborn little girl who clearly takes after me to untuck her legs and give the tech the measurements that she needed. She darkened the room and Evelyn came to life on the screen in front of us and there she was seemingly perfect in every way. Within 10 minutes of the scan the technician's face went from mild observation to hard concentration. My husband squeezed my hand and I tried not to panic. She finally broke the silence and said let me just get the doctor in here to help with some measurements I can't get. Even as a first-time mom I knew this was not a good sign and I started to cry. The perinatologist came in and spent an agonizing 15 minutes running the paddle over my stomach, hand over his mouth, lost in examining what we could not yet fathom. When he was done he sat us down and told us that Evelyn had severe dwarfism. In my mind I actually felt relieved and physically I exhaled. Naively I was angry at the doctor for making us worry so much over something that we could handle. Our baby would have limitations but she would be okay and we were all going to get through this together. Then he told us we believe your baby has a form of dwarfism so severe that her chances of survival are incredibly low, actually non-existent, incompatible with life. Now is the time to panic but instead we froze in time completely crushed by the weight of what the doctor had said. Two days later when time unfroze we drove to Children's Hospital of Philadelphia the best prenatal medical center in the country. We saw a team of specialists who immediately confirmed what the other doctor had told us. Evelyn would not survive, could not survive. She had the natuphoric dysplasia which is not only lethal but would be incredibly painful for her as she developed inside of me. The direct translation of the natuphoric is death bearing. An extensive three hour ultrasound showed her symptoms. Evelyn had no long bones in her legs which is why the sonogram technicians could not get an accurate measurement at the last few ultrasounds. Her legs were not tucked. They had not even grown to the point of being able to measure. Her arms were measuring six weeks behind and were bowed and misshapen like the old style of telephone receivers. Her tiny chest was so small it did not have room for her lungs to grow and this is the lethal part. Without proper development of her lungs my precious baby girl would suffer a slow and painful death by suffocation. Evelyn could die inside of me within days or weeks or she could go all the way to term only to be left gasping for the air that she would never breathe on her own. She might live for a few hours or days and she would be suffering the entire time. That was the best case scenario for her. All of the hopes and dreams we had for Evelyn died that day along with the dream of our new family. We mourned Evelyn and the family that we thought we would be. From the moment I found out that I was pregnant all I ever wanted to do was teach Evelyn to be kind. Now I would never have the chance to teach her to be kind or the chance to teach her anything else. As her mother it was my job to plan for her to have the best quality of life. I could not continue to plan for her to have no quality of life. My husband and I agreed that we didn't need Evelyn to be perfect but she needed to be healthy and she needed to stand a chance. She didn't. After days of crying researching soul searching no sleep and a pain in my heart that would not stop we decided to terminate so that Evelyn would not be subjected to pain and suffering. We loved her enough to let her go and be at peace and it was the only decision we would ever make for her as parents. The last night we had with her my husband played You Are My Sunshine on his guitar and we sang the words to her cradling my stomach. My mother sang that song to me when I was a child and throughout my pregnancy I would absentmindedly hum it or sing it to Evelyn. Only I could feel her little flutters deep inside of me and my heart broke into a million pieces many times over that night as we said goodbye. A few days before Thanksgiving at 21 weeks of gestation I had a dilation and evacuation a procedure that took place over three days. Before we began we were counseled extensively by the doctor and were informed of every aspect of what I would have to endure physically. Signing that paperwork was the hardest thing I have ever done but I knew it was what I needed to do for my daughter. I was surrounded by a kind and compassionate medical team who treated me my husband and Evelyn with dignity. The doctor later told me that she had never seen a baby with such severe malformations. I understood the extent of how much Evelyn would have suffered and as painful as it was we had to accept that she was not meant for this earth. I've started to put the pieces of my life back together after the devastation of saying goodbye to my daughter and the dreams I had for her. I've started to live a life that still means something even without her. One way to have meaning is to tell my story, her story, so that it would help others understand what a 20-week ban on abortion would do to women. I want people to know that abortion is not about the unwanted, the unvalued and the unknown babies of the world. Abortion is my story and what happened to my family. The decision we made for Evelyn was made because her life mattered to us and it will always matter to us regardless of how our family story changes in the future. Evelyn will always be a part of it. Thank you. I'm glad we've had the opportunity to hear these stories. Something that my colleagues should have had the opportunity to have 203 listen to these stories and go through a process that was legitimate. Also, we didn't hear from any providers, that healthcare workers, providers, doctors, and here with us today is a colleague who's a county commissioner in Montgomery County and also a doctor, Dr. Valerie Arcush. Good afternoon and thank you representative Franco, Governor Wolfe and these three extraordinary mom for sharing your story. I am Dr. Valerie Arcush. I'm an anesthesiologist that has specialized in obstetrics and although I don't currently practice clinical medicine, I did up until three years ago and the vast majority of the clinical medicine that I practice was on the labor and delivery floor with moms and their families helping them through labor and delivery. The stories that you heard today are heartbreaking but not that unusual and I think there's a very important point that I want to make about this particular band which is the band of 20 weeks. From the development of the fetus there is a time at which you can see very clearly how the organs are developing and that time is around 18 to 20 weeks and it is at that time that most women have what's called a level to ultrasound. It's an ultrasound that does a very detailed scan of the anatomy. It's an ultrasound that would not nearly would not be nearly as accurate if done before this time and so as you heard from all three of these women today they got that 20-week ultrasound, they found that there was a problem and it was in those next week to 10 days that they were able to get the consultations from experts to help them understand what the diagnosis that they had received on that ultrasound may or may not mean for their baby. I will tell you that there are women that get less severe diagnoses and over that next week to two weeks they are able to get consultations that are reassuring and enable them to make a decision together with their family with their their providers with their faith whatever just trusted decision makers they need to continue a pregnancy and one of the many concerns I have about this bill and I speak in the strongest possible opposition to HB 1948 is that this bill would cause women to rush to a decision sometimes with maybe a day to go before they would have to make a decision about whether or not to end a pregnancy. They would be forced into decisions in a time frame that they could not possibly get appropriate consultation from experts depending upon the situation that they were faced with. So I urge the members of the general assembly to take a deep breath listen to these stories understand the medicine behind this understand that calling for a 20 week abortion does not in any way fit with how the practice of obstetrics is carried out and we do not have to agree on abortion but we should be able to agree on the fact that calling for a 20 week ban will cause undue suffering among so many women and their families in this commonwealth and it is trying to interfere with the practice of medicine in a way that does not follow the evidence or the science or respects a woman and her family and her faith and her providers and their hope to make the best possible decision for themselves the baby that they're carrying and their families. Thank you. I want to thank in particular the three women who gave their personal testimony and I think in a very difficult very heroic that they came here today they viewed this so such an important issue for not just themselves but for the women of Pennsylvania for the mothers and daughters that we all have that that this piece of legislation which is like a midnight train headed for a vote without any transparency or the sunlight needs to have the opportunity to be aired out to hear these stories to understand the complexity of this issue their stories are something I hope every single member of the general assembly will watch on PCN will hear from your stories in the press that they will think twice about the process that they've engaged in which is beyond belief with respect to trying to get this through without any discussion or any hearing and and maybe even take this bill and put it away somewhere because it doesn't deserve to be on the floor of the house of representatives it doesn't deserve to be Pennsylvania law it will clearly harm women throughout Pennsylvania and we're here today to advocate for its defeat and and I hope that my colleagues will join us I want to really thank Planned Parenthood of Pennsylvania and the National Planned Parenthood here the fact that Cecile Richards came in to be with us today is no small matter I think she obviously knows how important this is this has been about a pattern of things happening around the country Pennsylvania was going to be another chip in Roe v. Wade we she's here today to speak truth and to let us know that we ought to be dealing with this in a more serious manner I want to thank our governor for stepping up he's been pro-choice governor of pro women's health in Pennsylvania for his entire life and certainly here as governor so we thank him for being here and to my colleagues who are here many of whom are members of the Women's Health Caucus a group that has tried to advocate for real legislation to address women's health issues in Pennsylvania that instead of this facade of dealing with women's health that you see in House Bill 1948 I want to thank them for stepping up to be here today and for all their work on behalf of Pennsylvania's women it's also to the advocates who've joined us thank you as well I hope that we have that we defeat this bill and we'll see how it flows today or tomorrow whenever it may run