Seasons of Grace
Remember President Obama, calm and confident, announcing his plan to provide health insurance for all Americans? Lecturing you through your TV screen on September 9, 2009–wagging his finger at his critics–he emphasized his promise:
“No federal dollars will be used to fund abortion, and federal conscience laws will remain in place.”
The President’s critics warned that Americans would be forced to pay for abortion, as proscribed by the Hyde Amendment; but Obama was adamant. In case you’ve forgotten, here it is:
Wait: What did he say? A little of this, a little of that…. Yes, it’s covered… No, it’s not…. depending on what group he was talking to.
And then there was the infamous Stupak agreement, by which Michigan pro-life Congressman Bart Stupak promised his vote for passage of Obamacare in exchange for the President’s guarantee that the new bill would not use federal funds to pay for abortion. On March 24, 2010, President Obama signed an executive order affirming that the Hyde Amendment would extend to the new bill.
Now it turns out that not only are American tax dollars funding abortion through the Affordable Care Act, but a new nonpartisan Government Accounting Office report shows that Obamacare is, in fact, the biggest expansion of abortion funding since Roe v. Wade. The report reveals that well over 1,000 health care plans under Obamacare pay for abortions utilizing taxpayer money.
How bad is it?
Lifenews.com reports that the GAO report focused mainly on determining the prevalence of elective abortion coverage in health plans sold on the exchanges, in the 27 states plus D.C. that currently do not have laws in effect that restrict abortion coverage. The GAO found that on these 28 exchanges, 1,036 plans cover elective abortion while 1,062 do not. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that between 2015 and 2024, $726 billion will flow from the federal Treasury in direct subsidies for Obamacare health plans.
Despite assurances that there would be plans available in each state that do not fund elective abortions, National Right to Life reports that the GAO found five states (Connecticut, Hawaii, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and Vermont) in which every insurance plan currently sold on the exchange covers elective abortion.
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So on Thursday, September 18, a coalition of pro-life groups and members of Congress gathered on Capitol Hill to demand a Senate vote on a House bill that would stop the massive taxpayer funding of abortion in Obamacare.
According to Lifenews.com:
The House of Representatives has passed the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act (H.R. 7), which would apply the traditional Hyde Amendment policy to all federal programs, including the Obamacare premium-subsidy program. But pro-abortion Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid refuses to schedule a vote on it.
“Congress should change ObamaCare to provide transparency and remove abortion funding so when individuals buy exchange plans beginning November 15th, they can actually make an informed decision,” said Tony Perkins, the president of the Family Research Council. “There have been many broken promises associated with ObamaCare. This is one broken promise that we cannot let go. The Senate must pass H.R. 7/S. 946 the No Taxpayer Funding of Abortion and Abortion Insurance Full Disclosure Act sponsored by U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.) and Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.).”
Read the rest of the story here.
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