U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (MO-03) issued the following statement after the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education funding bill for Fiscal Year 2018 was passed out of the Subcommittee with language that will provide protections for the unborn.

“I am incredibly pleased that my colleagues on the House Appropriations Committee recognized the importance of this issue and are willing to join me in ensuring that taxpayer dollars will not be spent on trafficking infant body parts,” Luetkemeyer said. “Taxpayer dollars should be held in a higher regard, and directed toward projects and priorities that not only better our country but also reflect the will of the people.”

Specifically, the legislation mandates that no funding be provided for research on fetal tissue that was obtained from an induced abortion.

Additionally, Luetkemeyer introduced H.R. 1895, the Protecting Life and Integrity Research Act, which would allow the National Institute of Health (NIH) to conduct research on donated stillbirth and miscarriage fetal tissue, but target the unethical practices of abortion providers by prohibiting authorization of research on fetal tissue obtained from an induced abortion.