Congress considers vast abortion mandates. (with your tax monies)

From: nrlc@nrlc.org Sent: Wednesday, July 08, 2009

 

WASHINGTON (July 8, 2009)  The Obama White House and Democratic congressional leaders are pushing hard for votes in late July on massive "health care reform" bills that contain provisions that would vastly expand access to abortion on demand, override state abortion laws, and establish federal funding of abortion.

 

Leading pro-abortion advocacy groups, including the Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA), NARAL, the National Abortion Federation, and the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice, have made statements in recent days admitting that they hope to mandate "access" to abortion for "all women" through provisions of national health care restructuring legislation.

 

So far, two massive health care bills have been unveiled, one in the Senate and one in the House. The full House is expected to vote on its version of the bill at the end of July. Senate floor action could occur shortly thereafter.

 

"These two bills pose one of the greatest threats to pro-life policies since the Supreme Court handed down its Roe v. Wade ruling legalizing abortion in 1973," said Douglas Johnson, legislative director for the National Right to Life Committee (NRLC), the federation of right-to-life organizations in all 50 states. "These bills contain multiple provisions that would result in federally mandated insurance coverage of abortion on demand, with massive federal subsidies, as well as mandated creation of many new abortion clinics and the nullification of at least some state limitations on abortion."

 

"The pro-abortion movement sees federal 'health care reform' legislation as a golden opportunity to force-feed abortion into every nook and cranny of the health-care delivery system," Johnson said. "Their goal, as they sometimes put it, is to 'mainstream' abortion. If Obama and his allies succeed, the result will be a very large increase in the number of abortions performed in America."

 

The imposition of sweeping pro-abortion mandates as part of ?health care reform? is currently the top priority of many pro-abortion organizations. These organizations are pushing for the abortion mandates both in public statements and in less visible lobbying efforts. In April, the president of PPFA said that her organization intends to use the health care legislation as a "platform" to guarantee access to abortion to "all women."' Likewise, the National Abortion Federation, an association of abortion providers, said, "NAF supports health care reform as a way to increase access to comprehensive reproductive health care, including abortion care, for all women."

 

On July 1, the Reverend Carlton W. Veazey, president of the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice (RCRC) , sent out an alert to that organization's e-mail list headed, "Urgent! Access to Abortion Services Threatened" The alert said, "Let there be no mistake, basic healthcare includes abortion services. . . . Reproductive healthcare, including abortion services, is an essential component of women's health, and we must act now to make sure women get a fair shake in the final healthcare reform bill." (RCRC is made up of a number of religious bodies, including the Episcopal Church, United Methodist Church, Presbyterian Church USA, and United Church of Christ.)

 

Both the House and Senate bills would empower federal officials to mandate coverage of and access to specific medical services. In an interview released July 7, Nancy Keenan, president of the pro-abortion advocacy group NARAL, said, "if, indeed, we can advance a panel or commission, then I am very optimistic about reproductive health care being part of this entire package."

 

The two bills reflect the commitment made by Barack Obama when he appeared before the Planned Parenthood Action Fund on July 17, 2007. Speaking of his plans for "health care reform," Obama said, "in my mind, reproductive care is essential care, basic care, so it is at the center, the heart of the plan that I propose." [emphasis added] Under his plan, Obama explained, people could choose to keep their existing private health care plans, but "insurers are going to have to abide by the same rules in terms of providing comprehensive care, including reproductive care ... that's going to be absolutely vital."

 

Time is short. Please act immediately on the items below, and encourage others to do so. Forward this alert to any appropriate lists.
 
- Go to the National Right to Life Legislative Action Center, here, and take a few minutes to use the form there to send messages to your two U.S. senators and to your representative in the U.S. House of Representatives, to urge them to oppose any federal ?health care reform? legislation that does not explicitly exclude abortion. You can modify the suggested message as you see fit. When you fill in your mailing address, your messages will automatically be directed to the appropriate U.S. House member and to your two U.S. senators.

 

- In addition, please TELEPHONE the offices of your two U.S. senators, give your name and address, and tell the senators' staff persons that you wish to be recorded as "opposed to Senator Kennedy's health care bill because it contains many pro-abortion mandates." The offices of any U.S. senator can be reached through 202-224-3121. Also, please TELEPHONE the office of your U.S. House member, give your name and address, and inform the staff person that you wish to be recorded as "opposed to the House Democratic Leadership health care reform bill because it contains many pro-abortion mandates." You can reach any U.S. House member's office through 202-225-3121. You can also find the direct-dial numbers (and fax numbers) for the Washington and in-state offices of your U.S. senators and U.S. House member by calling up their individual profiles on this website, here.

 

- Also, please send short letters to the "letters to the editor" features of your local newspapers, in order to alert your fellow pro-life citizens to the sweeping pro-abortion mandates that the Obama White House and the pro-abortion lobby are trying to smuggle into law through "health care reform." You can find contact information for your local news media in the "Media Guide" on the NRLC website, here.

 

Remember, the pro-abortion movement is throwing its massive resources into achieving this goal, and they have the support of the White House and the top Democratic leadership in Congress. The peril is grave.

 

For further questions or comments on this project, feel free to email us at legfederal@aol.com
     
To donate by phone: (202) 626-8813  
To contact us by mail: National Right to Life, Inc.
512 10th St., NW
Washington, DC 20004-1401

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