Turn Back the Assault on Women's Rights!

As you know, the House voted pass its health care reform bill (HR 3962) after the chamber approved an amendment that would prohibit public and private plans in new health insurance exchanges from covering abortion if they accept people who receive government subsidies. The amendment introduced by Reps. Bart Stupak (D-Mich.) and Joe Pitts (R-Pa.) bans the public plan option from covering abortion except in cases of rape, incest or to save the life of the woman.

Under the amendment, women with subsidized insurance policies seeking abortion coverage would be forced to buy separate abortion-only "riders" for their policies with their own money. But this is the equivalent of a ban on abortion coverage because women would be unlikely to buy riders for a procedure they do not anticipate needing. Such abortion riders do not exist because women do not plan to have unintended pregnancies or medically complicated pregnancies that require ending the pregnancy.

Effectively, Stupak's amendment goes much further than current law in restricting access to abortion, which currently is covered under most private health insurance plans, and results in women losing health benefits they have today. The amendment violates the spirit of health care reform, which is meant to guarantee quality, affordable health care coverage for all.

Prior to the amendment, there were already safeguards in the House bill to make sure that taxpayer money was not used to pay for abortions. Health insurance exchanges would've had to include one plan that covers abortion, along with one that doesn't, and the plans that cover abortion would have to take steps to make sure that federal funds are segregated from those used to pay for abortions.

[Your comments]

Clearly, the Stupak amendment is nothing less than an assault on women's right to freedom of choice, and I urge you to oppose any such language in the Senate's version of the bill. I ask you to defend a women's right to choose and do all that you can to make sure that in the conference committee the final version of the bill excludes the Stupak amendment.

Thank you for your time.