The Senate Finance Committee has sent a health-care proposal to its colleagues, but the legislation includes language that would mean taxpayer funding for abortions.
The majority of Republicans are holding fast to their resolve to reject any bill that does not contain specific language denying abortion coverage.
Pro-life groups are also keeping up the pressure for exclusion of abortion from the final draft.
Rep. Doug Lamborn, R-Colo., held a town-hall meeting in Colorado Springs today and said a Hyde-type amendment needs to be added to the legislation.
The Hyde Amendment says no federal funding can pay for abortions through the Health and Human Services appropriations bill. Current health-care legislation falls outside of that budget.
“Abortion funding is going to be something that’s going to be outside the annual appropriations process,” Lamborn said, “so if that language isn’t in the bill, then it’s a disaster as far as abortion goes.”
Lamborn predicted it would come down to a few votes.
“Some of these Blue Dog Democrats, they’re going to have to face the choice of whether they follow the people of their district or whether they follow their leadership,” he said, “because they can’t really satisfy both.”
President Barack Obama told a joint session of Congress in September that there would be no federal funding of abortion in health-care reform.
David Bereit, national director of 40 Days for Life and co-founder of the Stop the Abortion Mandate Coalition, told LifeSiteNews.com the current law before the Senate violates that promise.
“Regrettably, abortion industry lobbyists have successfully hijacked the health-care reform debate,” he said, “convincing these bureaucrats to move one step closer to handing the abortion industry a multi-billion-dollar, government-subsidized bailout that could jeopardize the prospects of real health-care reform for the American people.”
The Rev. Frank Pavone, national director of Priests for Life, told LifeSiteNews.com a grassroots effort is the only way to stop the legislation.
“If people have already contacted their members of Congress, now’s the time to contact them again,” he said, “because what matters in government is the perseverance of the communication. Send another letter; make another phone call.”
TAKE ACTION
Ask your representative and senators to oppose any government-mandated health-care plan that does not specifically exclude abortion coverage.
