Catholic Bishops: Keep Hyde. No Abortion Funding in Obamacare
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops stood firm against any compromise on the Hyde Amendment, reaffirming their opposition to taxpayer funding of abortion amid ongoing congressional debates over health care affordability and extensions of Obamacare subsidies.
Bishop Daniel Thomas of Toledo, Ohio, chairman of the USCCB’s Committee on Pro-Life Activities, issued a statement underscoring the bishops’ unwavering position.
“Authentic health care upholds the dignity of all human life, and health care policy must not violate this dignity,” Bishop Thomas said. “In upholding this core principle, the U.S. bishops have long opposed any proposals to expand taxpayer funding of abortion and will continue to do so, including, if necessary, in the current debates in Congress over health care affordability plans. We urge Congress to work creatively to enact legislation that does not compromise the dignity of the human person and that ensures access to authentic, life-affirming care.”
The bishops’ stance comes in response to President Donald Trump’s comments to House Republicans during a policy retreat where he suggested flexibility on the Hyde Amendment to advance negotiations on extending enhanced Obamacare tax credits.
Trump stated, “Now you have to be a little flexible on Hyde.”
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The Hyde Amendment, a longstanding provision first enacted in 1976, prohibits most federal funding for elective abortions, including through programs like Medicaid. Pro-life advocates credit it with protecting millions of unborn lives from taxpayer-subsidized abortion over nearly five decades.
The issue gained renewed urgency following a House vote yesterday, when Democrat lawmakers passed a Democrat-led bill extending enhanced Affordable Care Act tax credits for three years without including Hyde Amendment protections. The measure passed 230-196, with every Democrat voting in favor and at least 17 Republicans joining them, while most Republicans opposed it.
The Senate appears unlikely to take up that bill and is hashing out its own version that will hopefully include the Hyde provisions.
Pro-life leaders have warned that extending such subsidies without Hyde safeguards could allow taxpayer dollars to fund plans covering elective abortions in many states, reversing longstanding policy.
Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America President Marjorie Dannenfelser emphasized the non-negotiable nature of Hyde protections.
“Abortion is not health care and the Hyde Amendment is non-negotiable to protect unborn children and taxpayers from forced funding of abortion on demand,” she said. “This has been the consistent stance of the pro-life movement, backed by the strong consensus of Americans across partisan lines, for 50 years.”
On the Senate side, Republican Sen. James Lankford of Oklahoma declared he would not yield on the issue.
“I’m not flexible on the value of every single child,” Lankford insisted. “Every single child is valuable. There aren’t some children that are disposable, and some children that are valuable. Every child is valuable. And so, that’s not an area that I’m flexible on.”
Lankford described Hyde as a “red line,” adding, “I cannot support something that intentionally goes around Hyde.”
He noted that federal programs such as VA health care, Department of Defense coverage, Native American health services, Medicare and Medicaid do not fund elective abortions, and argued that Obamacare subsidies should follow the same standard.
The bishops’ statement and pro-life resistance highlight a broader push to maintain the Hyde Amendment’s protections as essential to upholding human dignity and preventing federal involvement in abortion funding.
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