The commonsense Capps Compromise which was agreed to during debate in the Energy and Commerce Committee ensures that taxpayers will not be paying for abortion and reflects the status quo and current law.  It prohibits federal funds from being used for abortion but still allows women to use their own money to buy the coverage they need.   Despite this effort to address concerns raised by pro-life Members, Representatives Stupak and Pitts decided to further restrict women’s access to care by offering their shortsighted, dangerous, and discriminatory amendment to HR 3962.

The Stupak/Pitts Amendment would make abortion coverage virtually inaccessible for most women in the new exchange.  It does so by:

(1)  Banning abortion coverage in the exchange for women who receive subsidies, except by separate rider that they could only purchase with their own, private funds.
(2)  Making it highly unlikely that women buying insurance in the exchange with their own money could obtain abortion coverage.

It is an outrage that at time when we are making historic changes – expanding American’s access to health care – a group of legislators are bonding together to deprive women of the very health care they both need and deserve.