The Indiana state legislature is on the verge of becoming the first state to block Medicaid reimbursements for low-income patients seeking basic health services at Planned Parenthood clinics.All smoke and mirrors, of course.
House Bill 1210, introduced by state Rep. Eric Turner (R-Cicero) in January, takes a number of swipes at abortion rights and includes a provision that would prohibit the state of Indiana from contracting with "any entity that performs abortions or maintains or operates a facility where abortions are performed." While the provision does not name a specific health provider, it effectively singles out Planned Parenthood, which receives $3 million dollars a year from the state.
Republican lawmakers are advancing the bill to prevent taxpayer-funded abortions, even though federal law already prohibits them. "The fundamental issue is that when we take tax dollars and fund any entity that performs abortions, we're forcing taxpayers to support a practice that many feel is objectionable," State Sen. Scott Schneider (R-Indianapolis), the author of the provision to cut Planned Parenthood's funding, told HuffPost in an interview.What is not smoke and mirrors is that if this legislation comes to pass, low-income women on Medicaid will not be able to use their coverage for basic health care services through providers that also happen to perform abortions -- that pesky, little legal MEDICAL procedure.
While the bill does not mention any providers by name, the clears intention here is aimed at Planned Parenthood. Blackmail of sorts: if you want the $$$, just stop providing abortions. After all, Planned Parenthood claims providing abortions accounts for only a small percentage of their medical service anyway, right? So what's the problem, no?
Too many problems to count.
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