Stupak amendment: 'Terrible defeat' for pro-lifers
Jim Brown - OneNewsNow - 11/11/2009 7:35:00 AM
Catholic bishops and other right-to-life groups have praised House approval of the Stupak amendment that bans federal funding of abortion in the public health insurance option, but Judie Brown of the American Life League (ALL) says the amendment is a "terrible defeat" for pro-lifers. Brown reports that the Stupak amendment would still permit taxpayers to pay for some abortions.
"It will allow taxpayers to pay for abortions in the cases of rape, incest, life of the mother, and quite possibly even more than that," the ALL president contends. "And the bigger problem with the Stupak amendment is that while it may be viewed by some people as being an incredible victory for the pro-life movement, the fact of the matter is it does not bode well for us being able to protect human beings in the long term."
Brown argues that the Stupak amendment allows individuals to separately purchase plans that cover abortion, "expands access to abortifacient contraception, expands funding for Planned Parenthood, has provisions for euthanasia, and has no conscience protection for healthcare workers."
The ALL leader argues that without the support of the Catholic bishops and groups like National Right to Life, the Affordable Health Care for America Act (H.R. 3962) could not have passed. Those groups, she states, "have traded millions of lives for political 'success.'"
National Right to Life, meanwhile, has warned that the Stupak amendment may ultimately be removed from the final version of healthcare reform legislation.
