Abortion has been a topic of controversy between religion and politics for decades. With the recent passing of the new health care bill, we find that once again, the topic is making headlines.
The issue that is bringing new drama to the White House is the language concerning abortion in the health care bill. Under the House bill, people would be permitted to buy supplemental coverage for abortions with their own money.
Abortion rights supporters are furious. Abortion groups have called the idea discriminatory and preposterous, arguing that women would never plan ahead for an abortion. They are demanding that the legislation that was recently passed by the House of Representatives be changed. They go further to point out that healthcare would be restricted regarding women’s reproductive health. To show their support, 90 House Democrats opposed to the amended abortion language wrote a letter to President Obama last week.
Religious leaders have been split over the issue of medical abortion coverage. Members of the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice, an organization comprised of representatives of progressive Catholic, Protestant and Jewish groups, will hold a news conference calling on the Senate to alter language in the House bill that places explicit restrictions on federal funding for abortion. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops pushed successfully to amend the House bill to prohibit abortion coverage in a government-run health insurance plan, as well as in private plans that accept anyone using government subsidies to buy insurance coverage.
Over the next few weeks, the issues of abortion and healthcare will be debated in the Senate, regarding the House bill and taxpayer funding of abortion. One will expect a fiery debate, bringing many ethical issues into the equation. We can only wait and see if the language of the House bill is amended.
SOURCE: http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/11/16/health.care.abortion/index.html