On January 23, as we celebrate the 53rd annual March for Life, we also recognize the 50th anniversary of the Hyde Amendment, which signed into law that American taxpayers will not subsidize elective abortions. Period. The Hyde Amendment is not about whether elective abortion should be legal, but about who should pay for it. For five decades, every Congress has voted in favor of annual appropriations bills to affirm the Hyde Amendment. The citizens of our great nation have widely differing opinions on abortion, but in poll after poll, Americans agree that they should not be forced to pay for someone else’s abortion.
The Hyde Amendment has two clear principles: Federal taxpayers do not pay for abortions and do not subsidize programs that pay for abortions. Every federal health care program offers Hyde Amendment protections, including Medicaid, Tricare, the Children’s Health Insurance Program, Indian Health Services, and Medicare, with the exception of one health care program: Obamacare.
The so-called “Affordable Care Act” is the only health care plan that bypasses Hyde’s protections with its infamous “Section 1303” accounting gimmick that was created when the bill was passed 16 years ago.
Democrats will often say that Obamacare adheres to Hyde because Section 1303 requires a “separate payment” of at least a dollar a month for abortion coverage, which they know is an accounting trick. As soon as the law was passed 16 years ago, the Obama administration ruled that “separate” actually meant “together,” allowing a payment to be split into two parts, often paid for with federal tax dollars.
ABORTION RESTRICTIONS CREATE MAJOR ROADBLOCK FOR BIPARTISAN OBAMACARE GRANT DEAL IN SENATE
U.S. Vice President JD Vance speaks as pro-life demonstrators gather for the annual March for Life rally in Washington, DC, January 24, 2025. (REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein)
The millions of people who pay zero premiums for Obamacare pay no extra dollars for their abortion coverage; it is included in their taxpayer-subsidized premium tax credit.
There are now twelve states that do not even allow a health care plan to be sold in the state unless it covers surgical and chemical abortion. In those states, every taxpayer is forced to subsidize abortions with their tax dollars and monthly premiums. About 15 different insurers failed to even report the dollars associated with abortion coverage on their enrollees’ bills, nor did they bill separately for the amount of the abortion premium, which is required by law.
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Of course, the biggest evidence that Obamacare doesn’t really protect against the Hyde Amendment actually comes from the pro-abortion groups Planned Parenthood Action Fund and Reproductive Freedom for All. They recently sent a strong letter to all Democratic members of Congress saying they would fight against any member of Congress who adds Hyde protection to the Obamacare tax credits. They know that Obamacare is the only federal health care system that pays for abortions, and they don’t want to lose that revenue stream.
There is no debate that healthcare costs have skyrocketed. Former President Barack Obama’s promise to save all American families $2,500 in health care premiums never materialized. For years, Republicans have developed simple strategies to reduce health care costs, such as allowing small businesses to band together into groups, creating subsidized risk pools to lower costs for all health plans, and confronting pharmacy benefit managers who limit formulary choices and drive up costs for consumers.
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But every time we try to address health care costs, Democrats demand that any deal include coverage for elective abortion paid for by American taxpayers. That’s a non-starter for the millions of Americans who want health care to save lives and won’t accept it. We do not believe that some children are disposable and that some children are valuable. We believe that all children are valuable.
That’s why the conversation about the 50-year Hyde Amendment is important, because children matter. All. We can lower health care costs, but to do that, Democrats will have to be more flexible on Hyde.
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