Update on Senate Health Care Bill and Pro-life Provisions

from National Right to Life 

The Better Care Reconciliation Act reduces the devastating impact on life brought by the abortion-subsidizing and abortion-expanding provisions of the Obama Health Care Law.

The Better Care Reconciliation Act contains several essential elements that mark a substantial improvement from the Obama Health Care Law. The bill creates a "State Stability and Innovation Program" which will bring many changes to both the private market and to plans eligible for tax credits. The "State Stability and Innovation Program" contains protections wherein plans that utilize these important dollars cannot cover elective abortion.

"National Right to Life believes that this bill makes substantial progress towards reducing the amount of federal dollars flowing to plans that cover elective abortion. Abortion is not healthcare, and the Senate has the chance to protect life by advancing this legislation," said Carol Tobias, president of National Right to Life

National Right to Life also strongly supports the language in the bill that would block, for one year, most federal payments to affiliates of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA). It would close the largest pipeline for federal funding of Planned Parenthood – Medicaid – and apply as well to the CHIP and the Title V and Title XX block grant programs, thus covering roughly 89% of all federal funds to Planned Parenthood. The amounts denied to Planned Parenthood, in effect, are reallocated to community health centers. Over one-third of all abortions in the U.S. are performed at PPFA-affiliated facilities. 

For additional up-to-date information on the extent of Planned Parenthood's involvement in abortion, please use this link. 

In addition, the Better Care Reconciliation Act retains employer-paid health insurance as a fully untaxed benefit. The Better Care Reconciliation Act also postpones the "Cadillac tax" which is designed to create a tax disincentive to suppress private, nongovernmental health care spending beyond a governmentally imposed limit. It is critical that Americans have access to quality life-saving healthcare to preserve their lives, care that will not be rationed more each year.

National Right to Life recognizes that additional changes may be made to the bill before it comes to a final vote and will carefully monitor to ensure that the essential elements listed above are retained, and no objectionable new components are added.

For additional information on the Better Care Reconciliation Act, please use this link.