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From: Steven Ertelt Sent: Saturday, November 07, 2009
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• Health Care Bill Gets House Approval, Abortion Funding Battle Shifts to Senate
• House Passes Stupak Amendment to Remove Abortion Funding From Health Care
• Democrats Won't Commit to Keeping Stupak Amendment to Stop Abortion Funding
• Pro-Abortion Groups Issue Alerts to Oppose Pro-Life Stupak Health Care Amdt
• Sarah Palin Rallies Thousands Against Abortion at Wisconsin Pro-Life Event
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Health Care Bill Gets House Approval, Abortion Funding Battle Shifts to Senate
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- The health care bill in Congress received its first favorable vote in a chamber of Congress on virtually a very narrow vote Saturday night. Passage of the legislation came after lawmakers voted for the Stupak amendment to remove abortion funding from the legislation. The House voted 220 to 215 with 39 Democrats joining 176 republicans to oppose it and 219 Democrats and one Republican in favor. Although the Stupak amendment removes the abortion funding under the public option and affordability credits, not all of the pro-life concerns are resolved with the bill. The measure appears to contain strong conscience protection regarding abortion for medical professionals; however, "Section 304(d) protects abortion practitioners from "discrimination" by pro-life insurance plans who want to participate in the exchange, but do not want to contract with abortionists," says Americans United for Life. "This limits the extent to which an insurance company can be pro-life," the pro-life group indicates. Also, while Sections 258(a) and (b) "provide that there is no preemption of state laws on abortion or of federal protections for conscience ... the conscience protection in the bill does not extend to pharmacists and pharmacies and there is no assurance that state laws protecting the conscience of these health care providers will not be preempted," the pro-life group notes.
HR 3926 also contains numerous end-of-life concerns.
The debate on abortion funding now moves to the Senate, where two different committees have approved two bills, both of which include abortion funding.
The Senate Finance Committee voted 14-9 last month to send a pro-abortion health care reform bill to the Senate floor. The Baucus bill, named for the chairman of the panel who is its main sponsor, would fund abortions with massive subsidies. Full story at LifeNews.com
House Passes Stupak Amendment to Remove Abortion Funding From Health Care
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- The House approved an amendment Saturday night to the government-run health care reform bill that would strip abortion funding from it. An amendment from pro-life Rep. Bart Stupak received a 240 to 194 vote with a handful of members voting present.
Under HR 3962, the current health care bill funds abortions in two ways -- through the public option and through the affordability credits given to consumers to purchase health care.Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- The House approved an amendment Saturday night to the government-run health care reform bill that would strip abortion funding from it. An amendment from pro-life Rep. Bart Stupak received a 240 to 194 vote with a handful of members voting present.
A combination of 176 Republicans joined with 64 Democrats to support the pro-life Stupak amendment while 194 Democrats voted against the measure and one Republican voted present.
Stupak, a Michigan Democrat, told his colleagues that his amendment would operate a similar manner to many other provisions like the Hyde amendment that currently stop abortion funding but would not apply to HR 3962.
"We're asking members to maintain current law and oppose federal funding on abortion," he said.
Congressman Chris Smith, a New Jersey Republican who heads the pro-life caucus in the House, related how a former Planned Parenthood director resigned after watching an ultrasound of an abortion. "Abortion not only kills children, it harms women physically and psychologically and risks significant subsequent harm for future children," he noted. "If we truly want to see fewer abortions and want to reduce them, then don't fund it."
See how your member voted by going to http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2009/roll884.xml
Democrats Won't Commit to Keeping Stupak Amendment to Stop Abortion Funding
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- Leading House Democrats are refusing to give pro-life lawmakers any guarantee that they will keep the Stupak amendment that cuts off abortion funding in the health care bill in later versions of the legislation should the House approve it. The House is expected to vote on the crucial amendment today to ensure abortion funding is not allowed in either the public option or through the affordability credits.
However, even if the House adopts the Stupak amendment, there is no guarantee that it will remain when House and Senate leaders meet in a conference committee to iron out the differences in the two bills. House Majority Leader John Boehner has thus far twice asked top Democrats whether they would commit to keeping the abortion funding ban in the bill as it moves forward and twice he was rebuffed.
Boehner asked pro-abortion committee chairman Henry Waxman, a California Democrat, who refused to give him any assurances. He then asked another committee chairman, pro-abortion Rep. Charles Rangel, if he would commit to the abortion funding and, again, he was denied a confirmation. "I can't guarantee you anything," Rangel said. Boehner responded: "While the House is expected to take on the Stupak amendment, it is quite clear that this could be a shell game that is underway and we have no guarantee that when it comes back from conference that the language will be in the bill." "I have my doubts this language if it passes has any chance of being in the final version of this bill," Boehner said. Meanwhile, the New York Times is reporting that Speaker Nancy Pelosi may have agreed to go along with the Stupak amendment only because she knows that it could be removed in the future as the process proceeds. Full story at LifeNews.com
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- Leading House Democrats are refusing to give pro-life lawmakers any guarantee that they will keep the Stupak amendment that cuts off abortion funding in the health care bill in later versions of the legislation should the House approve it. The House is expected to vote on the crucial amendment today to ensure abortion funding is not allowed in either the public option or through the affordability credits.
However, even if the House adopts the Stupak amendment, there is no guarantee that it will remain when House and Senate leaders meet in a conference committee to iron out the differences in the two bills. House Majority Leader John Boehner has thus far twice asked top Democrats whether they would commit to keeping the abortion funding ban in the bill as it moves forward and twice he was rebuffed.
Boehner asked pro-abortion committee chairman Henry Waxman, a California Democrat, who refused to give him any assurances. He then asked another committee chairman, pro-abortion Rep. Charles Rangel, if he would commit to the abortion funding and, again, he was denied a confirmation. "I can't guarantee you anything," Rangel said. Boehner responded: "While the House is expected to take on the Stupak amendment, it is quite clear that this could be a shell game that is underway and we have no guarantee that when it comes back from conference that the language will be in the bill." "I have my doubts this language if it passes has any chance of being in the final version of this bill," Boehner said. Meanwhile, the New York Times is reporting that Speaker Nancy Pelosi may have agreed to go along with the Stupak amendment only because she knows that it could be removed in the future as the process proceeds. Full story at LifeNews.com
Pro-Abortion Groups Issue Alerts to Oppose Pro-Life Stupak Health Care Amdt
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- Abortion advocates have reacted angrily to the allowance of a vote today on the Stupak amendment, which would prohibit abortion funding under RH 3962, the health care reform bill. They are calling on lawmakers to reject the amendment and force Americans to fund hundreds of thousands of abortions.
Planned Parenthood CEO Cecile Richards sent an email to her members with an "emergency" alert opposing the Stupak amendment. She complains that House Democrats allowed the vote on the amendment after "the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops met with leaders in the House of Representatives in their bid to eliminate" abortion funding. "If the bishops and their anti-choice partners in the House succeed, they'll permanently alter health care in America, even taking away benefits from women that they have today," Richards contends, even though that is not the case. She called the efforts of pro-life advocates, including the Catholic bishops, to secure a vote on the Stupak amendment "a discriminatory, mean-spirited attack on women." Richards calls on abortion advocates to ask their members to vote no on the Stupak measure and to urge abortion advocates through Twitter and Facebook to do the same thing. NARAL president Nancy Keenan also issued an email alert to her members while noting that the vote will ultimately be a close one where the stance of ever member of Congress matters. Full story at LifeNews.com
Sarah Palin Rallies Thousands Against Abortion at Wisconsin Pro-Life Event
Milwaukee, WI (LifeNews.com) -- Sarah Palin rallied thousands of pro-life advocates Friday night at a gala event sponsored by Wisconsin Right to Life. The former vice-presidential candidate and Alaska governor urged strong support for the pro-life position on abortion and end-of-life issues.
Palin told the pro-life advocates that the same ideology that brought abortion on demand and 50 million abortions is bringing discrimination against the elderly and disabled. She worries that is some lawmakers have a mindset that says unborn children are expendable "perhaps the same mind-set applies to other persons." "What may they feel about an elderly person who doesn't have a whole lot of productive years left," Palin asked the approximately 5,000 people who attended. "In order to save government money, government health care has to be rationed… [so] than this elderly person that perhaps could be seen as costing taxpayers to pay for a non-productive life? Do you think our elderly will be first in line for limited health care?" Palin asked. "And what about the child who perhaps isn't deemed normal or perfect per someone's subjective measure of their use or questionable purpose in the eyes of a panel of bureaucrats making our healthcare decisions for us," she continued. Palin did not bring up the controversial death panels that brought her so much attention but affirmed her belief that the nation is heading down the road to euthanasia thanks to the government-run health care bill. Full story at LifeNews.com
Comments or questions? Email us at news@lifenews.com.Copyright 2003-2009 LifeNews.com. All rights reserved.For information on advertising or reprinting news from LifeNews.com, email us.
Milwaukee, WI (LifeNews.com) -- Sarah Palin rallied thousands of pro-life advocates Friday night at a gala event sponsored by Wisconsin Right to Life. The former vice-presidential candidate and Alaska governor urged strong support for the pro-life position on abortion and end-of-life issues.
Palin told the pro-life advocates that the same ideology that brought abortion on demand and 50 million abortions is bringing discrimination against the elderly and disabled. She worries that is some lawmakers have a mindset that says unborn children are expendable "perhaps the same mind-set applies to other persons." "What may they feel about an elderly person who doesn't have a whole lot of productive years left," Palin asked the approximately 5,000 people who attended. "In order to save government money, government health care has to be rationed… [so] than this elderly person that perhaps could be seen as costing taxpayers to pay for a non-productive life? Do you think our elderly will be first in line for limited health care?" Palin asked. "And what about the child who perhaps isn't deemed normal or perfect per someone's subjective measure of their use or questionable purpose in the eyes of a panel of bureaucrats making our healthcare decisions for us," she continued. Palin did not bring up the controversial death panels that brought her so much attention but affirmed her belief that the nation is heading down the road to euthanasia thanks to the government-run health care bill. Full story at LifeNews.com
Comments or questions? Email us at news@lifenews.com.Copyright 2003-2009 LifeNews.com. All rights reserved.For information on advertising or reprinting news from LifeNews.com, email us.
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