Kate Bahn and Jamila Taylor at Talk Poverty write—The Hyde Amendment Made Abortion a Privilege—And It’s Holding Back the Economy:
Today is the 40th anniversary of the Hyde Amendment, the policy that severely limits the use of Medicaid to cover the cost of an abortion. Since Medicaid enrollees are predominantly low-income women, the Hyde Amendment has essentially turned abortion into a luxury item for women who can afford to pay for the procedure out-of-pocket.
Hyde is often siloed as a “women’s issue.” But when women cannot control their bodies and their reproductive futures, it is more difficult for them to advance economically. And since women make up more than half of the US population, it matters when something holds women back.
Because of the Hyde Amendment, women who receive health coverage through Medicaid face two sets of financial obstacles if they need an abortion. First, they must cover the direct costs of the procedure without insurance. A first-trimester abortion cost an average of $470 in 2009, which is already more money than many Americans would be able to come up with in the case of an emergency. Second, these women must also bear thepractical costs imposed by state restrictions, like multiple doctor’s office visits and unnecessary waiting periods. A low-income single mother who needs to pay for travel to the nearest clinic, a night at a hotel due to a mandatory waiting period, childcare, and lost earnings from work, could end up paying an additional $1,380.
Women who want an abortion but can’t afford the out-of-pocket costs inflicted by Hyde face major consequences over the course of their lifetimes. Studies show that women who wanted an abortion but were not able to obtain one faced worse economic outcomes, were more likely to live in poverty, and often carried unwanted pregnancies to term.
This isn’t just a burden on these individual women. When women do not have the power to choose the lives they want, it affects everyone. [...]
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At Daily Kos on this date in 2002—Homeland security bill stalled:
House Republicans are threatening to stay in session in order to pressure Senate Democrats to compromise on the Homeland Security bill. Dems are insisting on union protection for the proposed agency's employees, while the GOP hates unions.
However, if no bill ever passes, that would not be a bad thing. All the new agency does is shuffle a multitude of far-flung government agencies into a brand new bureaucracy. And, those agencies most tasked with "homeland security" issues -- the FBI and intelligence agencies -- are not even included.
The whole Homeland Security agency idea had its genesis in the post-9-11 hysteria, and was driven hard by Democrats eager to show their "security" bona fides. While balking at first, the White House caved in to deflect attention from the whole "Bush knew" frenzy. In both cases, support for the agency hasn't been borne of actual security concerns, but political opportunism. This whole idea stinks.
On today's Kagro in the Morning show, it’s a rerun of our 10/05/15 show. Greg Dworkin rounds up polling & headlines. More details of the OR shooting & a new alert. Gop fight over "leadership" elections continues, even over when to hold them. Will ideology talk louder than money?
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