Recently, the Biden administration’s Department of Health and Human Services announced a little-known Indian Health Service (IHS) rule that would eliminate restrictions on subsidy funding for abortions.
The nondescript title of the rule, “Eliminating outdated regulations” provides little information on the subject. In fact, to the average individual who does not monitor regulatory actions, this rule may seem like just routine bureaucracy.
In fact, that’s never the case. Indeed, the rule touches on one of the most divisive issues in American politics and represents the next step in the Biden administration’s abortion policy.
After the Supreme Court overturned the Roe v. Wade abortion decision, President Biden pledged “We will do our best to protect reproductive rights.” Since then, his administration has done just that, bypassing Congress and using the executive branch. unilaterally and illegally in the process. Perhaps most notable is Mr. Biden’s efforts to circumvent federal law that explicitly prohibits federal funding for abortion.
The best known of these laws is the Hyde Amendment, a long-standing spending provision that limits federal health care payments for abortions. The wording of the amendment has changed slightly over the years. Current text provides that “no funds appropriated by this act, nor any funds in any trust fund appropriated by this act, shall be expended for the purpose of any abortion.” .
September 2022, Department of Justice, Office of Legal Counsel with rubber stamp The Biden administration and HHS position that the Hyde Amendment does not prohibit HHS from funding transportation for abortions. The Hyde Amendment has been around since 1979, but it wasn’t until then that the Biden administration argued that it only restricted funding for the abortion procedure itself. HHS continues to allow abortion-related costs, such as transportation and lodging, to be paid.
But in late April, HHS’ Indian Health Service again misunderstood the Hyde Amendment. claim that“Current IHS regulations are not consistent with the current text of the Hyde Amendment.” He tried to argue that the amendment banning federal funding for abortion is “outdated” and “inconsistent” with the proposed amendment.
Our agency is here The Hyde Amendment is wrong. To justify removing these regulations, IHS implied that the Hyde Amendment actually required funding for abortions in cases of rape and incest.
But the Hyde Amendment is not a law that requires money for anything. Prohibits federal funding of abortion, with certain exceptions. In other words, the hide is the ceiling, not the floor. Abortion does not require funding. It simply prohibits funding for most abortions.
HHS has taken a number of aggressive positions under this administration, but this one may be the most ridiculous – first introduced by prominent pro-life leader Henry Hyde, and calling for taxpayer funding for abortion. The Hyde Amendment ban requires federal agencies to proactively pay for abortions. abortion.
IHS also removed other regulations that had nothing to do with the Hyde Amendment, without explanation. explicitly allowed funding for treatment of ectopic pregnancies; Recordkeeping requirements This is to ensure that IHS funds cannot be used to perform abortions unless a doctor certifies that the mother’s life would be at risk if the fetus were delivered as planned.
IHS’s final rule ignored public comments that suggested it misunderstood the Hyde Amendment. Although IHS did not provide any justification for this rulemaking other than the Hyde Amendment argument, commenter pointed out They argued that IHS misunderstood the effect of the law, but IHS maintained that their statements were irrelevant.agency stated cryptically “Comments regarding the content and application of the Hyde Amendment itself are beyond the scope of this rulemaking,” a statement repeated four times in the five-page final rule.
It’s already surprising that the agency has not responded to substantive comments and refused to justify rule changes, but the Biden administration’s attempt to turn the Hyde Amendment into an abortion funding mandate is completely shocking. It’s on point. The only clear message in this latest rulemaking is that the Biden administration will not let anything stand in the way of its radical abortion policies.
Eric Kniffin and Natalie Dodson work in the HHS Accountability Project at the Ethics and Public Policy Center. Eric also served as an attorney in the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division under Presidents George W. Bush and Obama.
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