How Exactly Will the Government Fund Abortion Under the New Health Care Law?
Ashley Horne, federal policy analyst with Focus on the Family Action, provides an in-depth look at health care and federal funding of abortion.
Let's be honest, the health care debate was not only exhausting, it was confusing. Perhaps even more confusing to Americans was the president's claim that his last-minute "pro-life" executive order fixed the abortion funding concerns in the health care bill. The truth is that even with the executive order in place, the government will still subsidize abortions under the new health care law. Here's how:
Starting in 2014, if a qualified person enrolls in a state-based private health insurance exchange that offers abortion coverage, the federal government will send tax dollars to that insurance provider to help offset the cost of the insurance coverage – coverage that includes abortion.
If you enroll in a taxpayer-subsidized health plan that covers abortion, the law requires you to make a separate payment of no less than $1 per month (an "abortion premium") to the insurance company for abortion services. It doesn't matter that you may object to the practice of abortion. It doesn't matter that you may never actually have an abortion. You pay anyway. In fact, everyone who enrolls in a taxpayer-subsidized health plan that covers abortion will be paying into a pool of money – money which can only be used by the insurance company to pay out for abortion services.
The abortion premium you pay to the health insurance company must be kept in an account that is separate from any tax dollars that are paid to the insurance company as a subsidy for the plan you enrolled in. (President Obama's executive order mandates "strict compliance" with the segregation of funds scheme in the health care law. See Section 2.) That's one reason why he thinks he can get away with saying that the executive order alleviates pro-life concerns.
Segregating the "abortion premium" doesn't mean that federal dollars aren't going toward abortion. Why? Because your tax dollars were already used on the front end to help someone else purchase a health insurance plan that covers abortion. So, by extension, the government is subsidizing abortion coverage – even though the abortion premium is paid out of pocket.
It's important to note that the government has had a longstanding policy (known as the Smith Amendment) of not subsidizing federal employee health plans that cover abortion. If federal employees want abortion coverage, they can pay for it with their own money. But tax dollars have been historically sheltered from subsidizing health plans that cover abortion.
And this life-affirming policy should remain in place. Focus on the Family Action supports the government's longstanding policy of not subsidizing abortion with tax dollars. The government should not give women more incentive to make the difficult choice of abortion but rather encourage positive alternatives like adoption.
Thankfully, the health care law allows states to "opt out" of offering taxpayer-subsidized insurance plans that cover abortion. In fact, Tennessee is in the process of passing legislation that would prevent the state from allowing health insurance providers that participate in their exchange to offer abortion coverage. But it's unlikely that all states will take that extra step.
Source: CitizenLink
Publish Date: April 16, 2010
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Ashley Horne, federal policy analyst with Focus on the Family Action, provides an in-depth look at health care and federal funding of abortion.
Let's be honest, the health care debate was not only exhausting, it was confusing. Perhaps even more confusing to Americans was the president's claim that his last-minute "pro-life" executive order fixed the abortion funding concerns in the health care bill. The truth is that even with the executive order in place, the government will still subsidize abortions under the new health care law. Here's how:
Starting in 2014, if a qualified person enrolls in a state-based private health insurance exchange that offers abortion coverage, the federal government will send tax dollars to that insurance provider to help offset the cost of the insurance coverage – coverage that includes abortion.
If you enroll in a taxpayer-subsidized health plan that covers abortion, the law requires you to make a separate payment of no less than $1 per month (an "abortion premium") to the insurance company for abortion services. It doesn't matter that you may object to the practice of abortion. It doesn't matter that you may never actually have an abortion. You pay anyway. In fact, everyone who enrolls in a taxpayer-subsidized health plan that covers abortion will be paying into a pool of money – money which can only be used by the insurance company to pay out for abortion services.
The abortion premium you pay to the health insurance company must be kept in an account that is separate from any tax dollars that are paid to the insurance company as a subsidy for the plan you enrolled in. (President Obama's executive order mandates "strict compliance" with the segregation of funds scheme in the health care law. See Section 2.) That's one reason why he thinks he can get away with saying that the executive order alleviates pro-life concerns.
Segregating the "abortion premium" doesn't mean that federal dollars aren't going toward abortion. Why? Because your tax dollars were already used on the front end to help someone else purchase a health insurance plan that covers abortion. So, by extension, the government is subsidizing abortion coverage – even though the abortion premium is paid out of pocket.
It's important to note that the government has had a longstanding policy (known as the Smith Amendment) of not subsidizing federal employee health plans that cover abortion. If federal employees want abortion coverage, they can pay for it with their own money. But tax dollars have been historically sheltered from subsidizing health plans that cover abortion.
And this life-affirming policy should remain in place. Focus on the Family Action supports the government's longstanding policy of not subsidizing abortion with tax dollars. The government should not give women more incentive to make the difficult choice of abortion but rather encourage positive alternatives like adoption.
Thankfully, the health care law allows states to "opt out" of offering taxpayer-subsidized insurance plans that cover abortion. In fact, Tennessee is in the process of passing legislation that would prevent the state from allowing health insurance providers that participate in their exchange to offer abortion coverage. But it's unlikely that all states will take that extra step.
Source: CitizenLink
Publish Date: April 16, 2010
Link to this article.
Send this article to a friend.
