Government health reform, as passed in the House, mandates employers offer government approved health insurance benefits to their employees. I think it is very likely that the government will not include mandated abortion coverage in its definition of an approved employer health insurance plan. Pro-choice supporters will regret the push for universal health reform.
The House bill, as passed Saturday night, 215-210, requires employers to offer medical insurance to their employees but restricts the government from subsidizing abortions in the public option and in the insurance exchange. The bill also gives power to the government to determine the types of health insurance that will meet the employer mandate.
Will the government definition of a qualified plan require employers' health insurance coverage to include abortion payments?
Certainly, plans without abortion coverage will be cheaper and many abortions are not for the physical health of the mother. It is often an elective procedure medically, when the mother's life and health are not at issue. Some employers will want their insurers to offer plans without the abortion coverage to save money and insurers will comply.
In addition, some employers on ethical and religious grounds will oppose paying for abortion coverage for their employees and it is likely they will win a legal battle that Congress has no right to mandate an elective medical procedure that violates an employer's ethical and religious beliefs. In the end, either way, employers will not have to provide medical insurance coverage for abortions.
Suppose abortion coverage is not initially mandated. It is constitutional and not an invasion of women's rights since the regulation will not prohibit abortions. It also will not prohibit an employee from privately purchasing health insurance, or paying directly, for abortions.
It seems to me that the government minimum acceptable mandated medical coverage will not include payments for abortions, where a mother's life or health is not in danger. Many, if not most, employers will offer the minimum government mandated coverage, without abortion coverage, to save premium money.
Under health reform, women will find that they no longer have health insurance coverage for voluntary, elective abortions. It seems to me to be a high price for pro-choice individuals to pay to get health reform.
The issue in health reform is not just, whether there are restrictions for abortion procedure payments. The issue is also, whether any of final laws will allow the government to set a minimum level of health insurance coverage in the plans offered by employers. If the government gets to approve what is covered or not in an employer's plan, it is likely that the government will not require abortion coverage.
No comments:
Post a Comment