Ted Deutch: “Today I rise for Phil and his wife, to tell their story. Phil and his wife tried to get pregnant for several years.…”

“Today I rise for Phil and his wife, to tell their story. Phil and his wife tried to get pregnant for several years. After fertility treatment, they were thrilled when his wife finally became pregnant with identical twins. Sadly, their twins were diagnosed with twin-twin transfusion syndrome, a deadly complication. At week 21, Phil and his wife learned the devastating and frightening news that not only would both twins die, but that without an abortion, his wife was at serious risk of suffering a ruptured uterus. Their options were limited. Their doctor could not perform an abortion because he was affiliated with a Catholic hospital, and Phil's wife was unable to fly due to her high-risk pregnancy. Instead, they drove from their home in Missouri to Kansas to terminate the pregnancy by induced labor and delivery. Phil and his wife were devastated. After the twins' deaths, Phil participated in a baptism and grieved their loss. Phil wants lawmakers to know: ``Decisions about abortion need to be made with the families and with the best medical information available.'' As he rightly puts it: ``There is no one-size-fits-all situation for all pregnancies.'' Placing government limitations on the constitutionally protected healthcare options of American women and their families will only add heartache and tragedy to these most difficult and painful decisions. Madam Speaker, on behalf of Phil and his family, I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on H.R. 36.”