Massachusetts Seeking To Stop Taxpayer Funded Abortions

LISTEN TO TLR’S LATEST PODCAST:


By Grace Carr

Pro-life activists have started a petition asking Massachusetts to change its abortion laws, giving women on Medicaid the right to received state-funded abortions, the Boston Globe reported Sunday.

The Hyde Amendment, which doesn’t allow tax dollars in some states to pay for abortions, doesn’t apply in Massachusetts, causing taxpayers to fund abortions and fueling cause for the petition.

Initially filed with the attorney general’s office June 29, the petition requires the signatures of at least 10 registered voters by Aug. 2 in order for a constitutional amendment to be considered on the 2020 ballot, according to Wicked Local. After meeting the initial threshold of signatures, the bill’s sponsors are now looking to capture as much attention as possible before August.

Proponents of the bill hope that, if the law is reversed, the state’s representatives will be able to affect whether the state would or would not fund abortions, according to the Boston GlobeThey say that the bill will at least begin a discussion about a law — which defines abortion as “the knowing destruction of the life of an unborn child” — that hasn’t been debated since its genesis in 1981.

“You can’t really discuss it with your legislators because they have their hands tied,” said Thomas Harvey, an attorney and chairman of the Alliance to Stop Taxpayer Funded Abortions ballot campaign. “It’s got to be made, in my view, a political issue and right now, it’s not.”

“Why are we spending our tax dollars on that?” said state Rep. James Lyons Jr., one of the bill’s sponsors. “We’re trying to do is just bring an awareness to what’s going on in Massachusetts,” he added, pointing out that most people in Massachusetts don’t realize tax dollars pay for abortions.

Others are opposed to the bill and allege that the Hyde Amendment — which blocks federal dollars from paying for abortions except in cases of rape, incest or saving the mother’s life — is already discriminatory enough by making it harder for poor women to get abortions.

“Every woman — regardless of her ZIP code — should have the ability to make decisions about her health and abortion without barriers,” Tricia Wajda, director of communications for the Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts, said in an email. “Prohibiting state funding for abortion for Medicaid-eligible women renders the right to an abortion illusory.”

The bill argues that “nothing in this Constitution requires the public funding of abortion,” and therefore seeks to introduce new legislation that will ensure it doesn’t do so.

Follow Grace on Twitter.
Click here for reuse options!
Copyright 2017 Daily Caller News Foundation
Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.

WATCH TLR’S LATEST VIDEO:

Related posts

8 comments

viagra online canadian pharmacy July 3, 2020 at 12:37 pm

viagra price

viagra no prescription

payday loans July 12, 2020 at 6:40 pm

online loans

loans for bad credit

loans for bad credit July 18, 2020 at 9:55 pm

payday loans online

cash advance online

viagra prescription July 21, 2020 at 11:43 pm

viagra cost

viagra for sale

tadalafil canadian pharmacy September 4, 2020 at 11:33 am

tadalafil vs sildenafil

purchasing cialis online

Canadian generic viagra online November 18, 2020 at 4:44 pm

Canadian viagra 50mg

Brand viagra over the net

บอลยูโร 2024 February 17, 2024 at 9:20 am

… [Trackback]

[…] Here you can find 28276 more Info to that Topic: thelibertarianrepublic.com/massachusetts-seeking-stop-taxpayer-funded-abortions/ […]

blote borsten May 14, 2024 at 4:08 am

… [Trackback]

[…] Find More on to that Topic: thelibertarianrepublic.com/massachusetts-seeking-stop-taxpayer-funded-abortions/ […]

Leave a Comment