Henry Waxman: “this bill represents the triumph of ideology and politics over science. The Congress of the United States is going to…”

“this bill represents the triumph of ideology and politics over science. The Congress of the United States is going to tell doctors to give a brochure with information that scientists do not believe is accurate. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists opposes this bill, and this is the professional society of physicians who know the most about the care of pregnant women, and they have stated they know of no legitimate scientific information that supports the statement that a fetus experiences pain. Well, let me repeat that. This organization says they know of no legitimate scientific information that supports the statement that a fetus experiences pain. So the Congress in this bill would tell doctors that they have to inform a woman of something that most of these doctors do not believe to be scientifically accurate. It is bad enough to interfere with the doctor-patient relationship, but to tell doctors that they have to give their patients inaccurate medical information would not just be meddlesome. It is completely out of line. It would be a dangerous precedent where we ask doctors to tell patients something that is scientifically not valid in the most personal of decisions of people's lives. If we really care about women's informed consent, we should not force doctors to misinform them. I urge opposition to this bill.”