NYT - Abortion was at Heart of Wrangling

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/08/health/policy/08scene.html?_r=2&partner=rss&emc=rss
Abortion Was at Heart of Wrangling

By DAVID M. HERSZENHORN and JACKIE CALMES
Published: November 7, 2009
WASHINGTON — It was late Friday night and lawmakers were stalling for time. In a committee room, they yammered away, delaying a procedural vote on the historic health care legislation. Down one floor, in her office, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi desperately tried to deal with an issue that has bedeviled Democrats for more than a generation — abortion.

Her attempts at winning them over had failed, and Ms. Pelosi, the first woman speaker and an ardent defender of abortion rights, had no choice but to do the unthinkable. To save the health care bill she had to give in to abortion opponents in her party and allow them to propose tight restrictions barring any insurance plan that is purchased with government subsidies from covering abortions.

The restrictions were necessary to win support for the overall bill from abortion opponents who threatened to scuttle the health care overhaul.

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[emulatorloo]

1. Thanks for posting this information n/t

[Vincardog]

2. What ever happened to the First Amendment?

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

3. You know it was predictable that once federal dollars (subsidies) were applied to private policies

that someone would want to expand on the Hyde amendment. Highly predictable.

When and if we ever get single payer, one of the areas that the privates will focus on is selling elective policies for procedures not covered by single payer - cosmetic surgeries, etc. It is highly possible that they would end up covering all female and male elective reproductive issues i.e - birth control, viagra, abortions, in vitro fertilizations, etc.

[Gman2]

4. Again, the culprit, is bistupakisanship. We dont need their swill.