Editorials, Opinion Piece React To Stupak Amendment In House Reform Bill

Main Category: Abortion
Also Included In: Health Insurance / Medical Insurance;  Women's Health / Gynecology
Article Date: 11 Nov 2009 - 5:00 PDT

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Two editorials and an opinion piece on Tuesday discussed an antiabortion amendment by Reps. Bart Stupak (D-Mich.) and Joe Pitts (R-Pa.) to the House health reform bill (HR 3962). The amendment passed with 64 Democratic votes and 176 Republican votes.

• Baltimore Sun: "House Democrats ought to be embarrassed by the antiabortion amendment grafted over the weekend to their landmark health care legislation," a Sun editorial states. The editorial continues, "As ugly as the health care debate has gotten, the last thing the women of this country likely expected was that a Democrat-controlled Congress would want to limit their ability to purchase health insurance plans that cover abortion." According to the editorial, the amendment "goes far beyond the established practice of banning federal Medicaid funding for abortion," adding, "And because of that, the opportunity to purchase coverage for the procedure may be diminished for all women, even those who get no subsidies from the government." The editorial states that, although the "amendment's supporters claim women could purchase a separate rider to cover abortion," it is a "ludicrous proposition" that such riders would work effectively because they "are not commonly available." In addition, the editorial states, "Most people do not have the foresight to know if they'll ever need an abortion, any more than they might need to have a gallbladder removed or a kidney stone pulverized" (Baltimore Sun, 11/10).

• New York Times: The amendment represents "an infringement of a woman's right to get a legal medical procedure and an unjustified intrusion by Congress into decisions best made by patients and doctors," a Times editorial states. According to the editorial, when the House bill was brought to the floor, it "already included a careful compromise that should have satisfied reasonable legislators on both sides of the abortion issue." The editorial continues, "The compromise would have prohibited the use of the tax subsidies to pay for almost all abortions, but it would have allowed the segregation and use of [private] premium contributions and copayments to pay for such coverage," which is similar to an approach used by 17 state Medicaid programs that cover abortion with their own funds. The editorial adds, "Yet neither the Roman Catholic bishops nor antiabortion Democrats were willing to accept this compromise." According to the editorial, the fact that the "highly restrictive language" of the amendment was "easily approved" is "depressing evidence of the power of antiabortion forces to override a reasonable compromise." It states that lawmakers who support antiabortion rights "were willing to scuttle the bill if they didn't get their way," adding, "Outraged legislators who support abortion rights could also have killed the bill but sensibly chose to keep the reform process moving ahead." The editorial concludes, "We urge the Senate to stand strong behind a compromise that would preserve a woman's right to abortion services" (New York Times, 11/10).

• William McGurn, Wall Street Journal: Stupak "is one of the few" people who has made House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) "cry 'uncle,'" columnist McGurn writes. According to McGurn, "Stupak stood firm" on the amendment, and "Pelosi realized something would have to give if she wanted to get a health care bill passed." He adds, "So she gave Stupak his vote -- and his victory." McGurn continues, "As it is, Democrats now have to make some decisions that may anger their Planned Parenthood wing. The fight itself will be interesting, judging from" recent comments by Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.) that 40 Democrats "will vote against a final bill unless the Stupak amendment is stripped out." He adds, "Of course, if it is stripped out, that will put even more pressure on those 64 Democrats who voted for the amendment" (McGurn, Wall Street Journal, 11/10).

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