Rep. Sensenbrenner And Rep. Roe Use Lies To Call President Obama A Liar
Sensenbrenner Claimed That President Obama Is Lying When He Says Federal Funding Will Not Pay For Abortions. In an opinion piece in The Hill headlined "Obamacare: Lies, d*mn lies & statistics," Rep. James Sensenbrenner (R-WI) wrote:
As pundits have commented in recent weeks, and many of us have realized, you need to watch what the President really does, not listen to what he says, as the two are often in vast contrast of one another. As you can read above, nowhere is this truer than on the issue of abortion... Now that we know how little the President values his word and that he is comfortable violating an Executive Order, we are only left to wonder what other secrets are lurking for us in the dark. Obamacare is a horrible law. The fact that hardworking taxpayers are now funding abortions - when many would rather use that money to provide for their families in an economy President Obama has only worsened - is an absolute outrage. The abortion funding being given to the state of Pennsylvania should be added to the already long list of why Obamacare must be repealed by Congress or overturned by the Supreme Court, whichever is quickest - and that's no lie!
[The Hill, 7/16/10, emphasis added]
Sensenbrenner: "Reports...Coming Out" That PA's Program "Will Fund Abortions." In an opinion piece in The Hill, Rep. James Sensenbrenner (R-WI) wrote: "As reports are coming out that Pennsylvania is receiving $160 million from the Department of Health and Human Services to set up a new high-risk insurance pool program that will fund abortions, we are seeing, yet again, that the Obama Administration will say and do anything to pass their liberal agenda - ignoring public opinion along the way." [The Hill, 7/16/10]
Roe: Obama "Has Officially Approved The First Instance Of Taxpayer-Funded Abortions." In an opinion piece in The Hill, Rep. Phil Roe (R-TN) wrote: "The Obama administration has officially approved the first instance of taxpayer-funded abortions under the new national government-run healthcare program. The Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) is providing $160 million to the State of Pennsylvania to set up a new high-risk insurance pool program that will include plans that have access to abortions, as part of a larger $5 billion commitment of taxpayer funds that will include abortion coverage for over 400,000 people nationwide." [The Hill, 7/16/10]
Roe: "It's Clear Now" That Affordable Care Act Funds Abortions Despite "What The President Led The American People To Believe." In an opinion piece in The Hill, Rep. Phil Roe (R-TN) wrote:
The only way to truly prevent taxpayer funding of abortions is to enact a law that prevents any taxpayer funding from being used to perform abortions. The healthcare bill, now signed into law, does not meet that standard, and it's clear now that the law provided more than enough flexibility for tax dollars to be used to enable abortions. On May 11, 2010, in a letter to Democratic and Republican congressional leaders on implementation of the new law, Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius wrote, "States may choose whether and how they participate in the program, which is funded entirely by the federal government." Essentially, her statement leaves the door wide open for states to decide whether or not to use taxpayer dollars to fund abortions. What pro-life advocates were warning in the past is now a reality, as we are witnessing the beginning of taxpayer-subsidized plans offering abortion services. Regardless of your position on abortion, this is not what the president led the American people to believe.
[The Hill, 7/16/10, emphasis added]
Affordable Care Act Requires Private Financing Of Abortions Except In Cases Of Rape, Incest, Or To Save The Mother's Life
PolitiFact Rates Pennsylvania Abortion Claims "False." Non-partisan fact-checkers PolitiFact.com investigated a similar claim by the National Right to Life Committee, and found that the state-run insurance pools will not, in fact, be allowed to spend federal dollars on abortions:
After the anti-abortion groups made the charge, the Obama administration was quick to say that it had not yet put forward formal regulations for the state plans, and that it would include restrictions so that abortion would only be covered if it met the tests of a well-known restriction known as the Hyde amendment. The Hyde amendment, which traditionally applies to federal dollars used in the Medicaid health plan for the poor, forbids abortion except in the cases of rape, incest or to save the life of the mother.
[...]
But it's important to keep in mind that this plan is intended to cover older people who have health problems, not young, healthy women who might seek abortions, and that the regulations are being created quickly. In short, we don't see pre-meditated intent to cover elective abortion. And as soon as the issue of abortion was raised, the Obama administration stated that the plans would not be allowed to cover elective abortions and that forthcoming regulations would reflect that. Given those assurances, we rate the National Right to Life Committee's statement False.
[PolitiFact.com, 7/13/10, emphasis added]
The Affordable Care Act Clearly States The HHS Secretary Cannot Allow Federal Funds To Pay For Abortions. Section 1303 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act reads, in part:
(C) PROHIBITION ON FEDERAL FUNDS FOR ABORTION SERVICES IN COMMUNITY HEALTH INSURANCE OPTION -
(i) Determination by Secretary. - The Secretary may not determine, in accordance with subparagraph (A)(ii), that the community health insurance option established under section 1323 shall provide coverage of services described in subparagraph (B)(i) as part of benefits for the plan year unless the Secretary - (I) assures compliance with the requirements of paragraph (2); (II) assures, in accordance with applicable provisions of generally accepted accounting requirements, circulars on funds management of the Office of Management and Budget, and guidance on accounting of the Government Accountability Office, that no Federal funds are used for such coverage; and (III) notwithstanding section 1323(e)(1)(C) or any other provision of this title, takes all necessary steps to assure that the United States does not bear the insurance risk for a community health insurance option's coverage of services described in subparagraph (B)(i).
[Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, accessed 7/19/10]
"The Senate Bill, Like The House Bill, Prohibits The Use Of Federal Premium Subsidies To Pay For Abortions." In an op-ed in The Hill, Washington and Lee University law professor Timothy Stoltzfus Jost wrote:
I have taught and written about healthcare law and policy for 30 years and am an author of the most widely used health law teaching book... The Senate bill, like the House bill, prohibits the use of federal premium subsidies to pay for abortions that are not covered by Medicaid (that is, cases of rape and incest or of physical threat to the life of the mother); provides that the government cannot require health plans to cover abortion; prohibits health plans and federal agencies or state and local governments receiving federal funds from discriminating against providers because of their unwillingness to provide for, pay for, provide coverage for or refer for abortion; and leaves in place all state laws regulating abortion and federal law regarding conscience protection or willingness to provide abortion. Neither bill affects abortion coverage through employment-based plans.
[Jost op-ed, The Hill, 3/11/10, emphasis added]
FactCheck.org: "The New Law Does Not Provide Direct Federal Funding For Abortion." According to the non-partisan FactCheck.org:
"The law says individuals who get federal subsidy dollars must use their private money to pay for coverage of abortion except in cases of rape, incest or to save the life of the mother. Claims that the new law will lead to a large increase in the number of abortions lack support. Strictly speaking, the new law does not provide direct federal funding for abortion, except in cases of rape or incest, or to save the life of the mother - the same rules that now apply to Medicaid coverage for low-income persons and to the insurance available to federal workers and military families. In fact, the new law states specifically that federal funds are not to be used for coverage of any other kinds of abortions, and that only premium dollars paid by individuals out of their own pockets may be used to pay for coverage of other kinds of abortions."
[FactCheck.org, 4/1/10, emphasis original]
The "Hyde Amendment" Prohibits Federal HHS Dollars From Paying For Abortions. According to CNN: "The Hyde Amendment is a piece of legislation banning the use of federal funds for abortions. The amendment -- passed in 1976 and named for its chief sponsor, former Rep. Henry Hyde of Illinois -- applies only to funds allocated by the annual appropriations bill for the Department of Health and Human Services." [CNN.com, 3/22/10]
- The Hyde Amendment Now Includes Exceptions For Rape, Incest And To Save The Life Of The Mother. According to NPR: "But what many people don't realize is that the Hyde amendment...has changed many times over the years. 'Today's Hyde language, which has been in every annual Labor-HHS [Health and Human Services] appropriations bill since 1976, specifically prohibits federal dollars from being used to pay for abortions except if the pregnancy was the result of rape, incest or the life of the mother was in danger,' said Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) on the Senate floor. That's true. But it hasn't always said that. 'When the Hyde amendment was first passed, in 1976, there were no exceptions. It was just a straight-out ban,' said Laurie Rubiner, vice president for public policy at Planned Parenthood." [NPR, 12/14/09, brackets original]