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Congressman Markwayne Mullin (OK-02) defended his questioning at a hearing last week on the Title X Protecting Life Rule. Democrats argued that the new rule will prohibit health care professionals from providing information on abortion to patients, although the rule would allow providers to counsel patients on abortion in a neutral way.
“This is about information,” Mullin said during the hearing. “If we’re going to have these options out to the public, then they also have to know what their choices are. You want to provide your patient with the best information possible and you’re saying that under the new Title X rule that will be prohibited.
“You want to provide information to the patient, but you’re not wanting to talk about the abortion and what procedures take place,” Mullin continued.
After asking a question on information provided to a patient about an abortion procedure, Democrats on the Energy and Commerce Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee attempted to stop Mullin from continuing his questioning, saying the topic of abortion was not relevant to the hearing.
“Abortion has been brought up multiple times in this hearing,” Mullin said. “It’s not outside the purview because you guys don’t want to talk about. Yet anyone else on that [Democratic] side can bring up whatever they want to and they can talk about whatever they want to.”
Democrats brought up abortion at least 15 times throughout the hearing without being challenged.
