Senate Defeats Antiabortion Amendment To Health Reform Bill

Main Category: Abortion
Also Included In: Health Insurance / Medical Insurance
Article Date: 10 Dec 2009 - 4:00 PDT

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The Senate on Tuesday voted 54-45 to table an amendment to its health reform bill that would prohibit coverage of abortion services in any health plan insuring people who receive federal subsidies, though the action "is unlikely to be the final word on how the issue is dealt with in the health bill," the New York Times reports. The amendment, offered by Sens. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) and Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), was virtually identical to an amendment adopted in the House health reform bill (HR 3962) that was introduced by Rep. Bart Stupak (D-Mich.). The amendment stated that no federal money could be "used to pay for any abortion or to cover any part of the costs of any health plan that includes coverage of abortion," except in cases of rape, incest or to save the life of the woman. Women could use their own money to buy "separate supplemental coverage for abortion."

The current language in the Senate bill would allow federally subsidized insurance plans to cover abortion services but would require plans to segregate federal funds from private money that would pay for the services (Pear/Herszenhorn, New York Times, 12/9). During a floor speech before the vote on Nelson's amendment, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said the bill's current language represents "a fair middle ground" on the issue (Murray/Montgomery, Washington Post, 12/9). Reid, an abortion-rights opponent who voted against Nelson's amendment, said that the "reason I oppose abortion and the reason I support this historic bill are the same: I respect the sanctity of life" (Hook/Levey, Los Angeles Times, 12/9). He added that the health reform bill is "not an abortion bill" and that the Senate "can't afford to miss the big picture," noting that "[n]either this amendment nor any other should overshadow the entire bill or overwhelm the entire process. ... I will not support efforts to undermine this historic legislation" (Kellman, AP/NPR, 12/9).

Reid was joined by 50 Democrats, two independent and two Republicans -- Maine Sens. Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe -- in voting against the amendment. Seven Democrats -- Nelson, Evan Bayh (Ind.), Robert Casey (Pa.), Kent Conrad (N.D.), Byron Dorgan (N.D.), Ted Kaufman (Del.) and Mark Pryor (Ark.) -- voted for the amendment along with 38 Republicans.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) said, "A majority saw it was not right to say that a woman could not pay for abortion or abortion coverage herself if her insurance company received any federal dollars," adding that the vote "is the first thing we've won in years."

More Abortion Battles Lie Ahead

Tuesday's vote "complicates the outlook" for the bill's final passage, as Reid and other Democratic leaders continue to work toward the 60 votes needed to pass the final bill out of the Senate, the Times reports (New York Times, 12/9). Although the seven Democrats who voted for the Nelson amendment are not expected to vote against the final Senate bill over the issue, Reid needs the support of the entire 60-member Democratic caucus -- including Nelson -- if he hopes to pass the bill, The Hill reports (Young, The Hill, 12/8).

Nelson had threatened to withdraw his support for health reform legislation if his abortion language was not included in the final bill. However, he said that he is unsure of how he will vote after Tuesday's rejection of his amendment. "Until everything is settled and you've got a clear view of what changes might be made and what may be there, it's hard to say," he said, adding, "I don't want to be stubborn or closed-minded (but) I have trouble imagining what (another compromise) would be" (Pierce, Roll Call, 12/9).

According to CQ Today, Democratic leaders have two options in the wake of Nelson's amendment: finding at least one Republican to offset the possible loss of Nelson's vote or find a compromise on the abortion language that will not risk any other Democratic votes (Ethridge, CQ Today, 12/8).

Top Democratic staffers in a Dec. 4 meeting discussed setting up a process to allow the House to pass the Senate bill without a conference, according to several party aides, CongressDaily reports. The maneuver could avoid Senate filibusters and possibly deliver a bill to President Obama by the end of the year. According to CongressDaily, Democratic leaders are concerned that conservative Democrats who support the House's Stupak language on abortion coverage could vote against a final bill that is closer to the Senate's language, while abortion-rights advocates could vote against a bill that includes the more restrictive language. Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.), who supports abortion rights, has said that 41 members of Congress are willing to oppose a final bill that includes the House language (Hunt, CongressDaily, 12/8).

Agreement Reached on Public Option

Reid also announced on Tuesday night that a groups of 10 Democratic senators had reached "a broad agreement" to table the proposed public option in the bill, which has "posed the biggest obstacle" to passing the bill in the Senate, the Times reports. The agreement would expand Medicare by allowing people ages 55 through 64 to "buy in" to the program, while giving the government power to offer a new insurance plan if the private plans do not meet certain goals, the Times reports (New York Times, 12/9).

NPR, 'Countdown' Examine Reform Debate

MSNBC's "Countdown" on Tuesday included a discussion with Washington Post columnist Eugene Robinson about the impact of health reform on women (Olbermann, "Countdown," MSNBC, 12/8). NPR's "Morning Edition" on Wednesday also reported on the Senate votes (Rovner, "Morning Edition," NPR, 12/9).

Stupak 'Hopeful' Amendment Will Be in Final Bill, New York Times Opinion Piece Says

In a New York Times opinion piece, Stupak writes that he is "hopeful that the spirit of our legislation will make it into the final bill." Stupak claims that his amendment, which was added to the House bill in November, "maintains current law, which says that there should be no federal financing for abortion." Women receiving federal subsidies to purchase insurance would not be allowed to purchase policies that cover abortion services, but the amendment "does not prevent private plans from offering abortion services, and it does not prohibit women from purchasing abortion coverage with their own money," he argues (Stupak, New York Times, 12/9).

Reprinted with kind permission from http://www.nationalpartnership.org. You can view the entire Daily Women's Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery here. The Daily Women's Health Policy Report is a free service of the National Partnership for Women & Families, published by The Advisory Board Company.

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