Abortion-Rights Advocates Lobby Lawmakers On Health Reform; Amendment Votes Expected

Hundreds of abortion-rights supporters on Wednesday visited Capitol Hill to insist that access to health insurance plans that include abortion coverage not be further restricted under health care reform legislation, the New York Times reports (Pear/Herszenhorn, New York Times, 12/3). The rally was organized by the Coalition To Pass Health Care Reform and Stop Stupak! -- which includes dozens of groups that advocate for abortion rights, women's rights and civil rights -- to oppose Reps. Bart Stupak (D-Mich.) and Joe Pitts' (R-Pa.) amendment to the House health reform bill (HR 3962), CBS News' "Political Hotsheet" reports (Condon, "Political Hotsheet," CBS News, 12/2). The amendment would ban insurance plans, public or private, that receive federal subsidies from covering abortion services (Women's Health Policy Report, 12/2). Several abortion-rights supporters in Congress attended the rally, including Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and Reps. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.) and Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) ("Political Hotsheet," CBS News, 12/2).

Rep. Judy Chu (D-Calif.) said "women will lose benefits" under the House's version of the legislation, which she called "the biggest rollback of reproductive rights in decades." Marcia Greenberger, co-president of the National Women's Law Center, said the House bill goes to "ridiculous extremes" in trying to prevent federal funding from covering abortion services (New York Times, 12/3).

The rally is part of the coalition's weeklong campaign to draw attention to the Stupak amendment. It also will include more than 120 college campus events and online campaigns ("Political Hotsheet," CBS News, 12/2).

Vote Expected Thursday on Women's Health Benefits Amendment

On Thursday, the Senate is expected to begin voting on amendments to its health care reform bill, including two amendments -- one proposed by Democrats, the other by Republicans -- regarding health benefits and preventive care services for women, the Times reports (New York Times, 12/3). An amendment by Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.) would ensure that health plans provide coverage of women's preventive care services at little or no cost to patients. The amendment would guarantee that women have access to routine mammograms starting at age 40. The other women's health-related amendment, sponsored by Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), is an alternative to Mikulski's (Smith, Reuters, 12/2).

Meanwhile, Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) plans to reveal an amendment similar to the Stupak amendment as early as Thursday, Politico's "Live Pulse" reports. On Tuesday, Nelson said that his amendment will be "as identical to Stupak as it can be," adding that he would oppose health reform legislation that does not include the amendment. According to "Live Pulse," it is unclear if Nelson's amendment would need 60 votes or if Democrats would move to table to amendment, a procedure that requires only 51 votes (Budoff Brown, "Live Pulse," Politico, 12/2). Opponents of the language say Nelson does not have enough votes to pass the amendment, and some have said they will oppose any final bill that includes such restrictions (Wener, AP/Google News, 12/2).

New Anti-Stupak Campaign Launched

In related news, FDL Action, the political action committee of the liberal blog network FireDogLake, on Tuesday launched its own campaign against the Stupak amendment, which will include phone banking constituents in the districts of Democratic lawmakers who voted for the amendment. Jane Hamsher, FDL founder, said, "We hope that by reaching out to educate likely voters in their districts to the far-reaching implications of the Stupak language, we can help these wayward Democrats understand that having the Hyde language in the bill is sufficient to their needs" ("Political Hotsheet," CBS News, 12/2).


Reprinted with kind permission from nationalpartnership. 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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