Rep. Smith slams administration over 'abortion surcharge' rule
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Shown here is Rep. Chris Smith. (House of Representatives)
A leading anti-abortion lawmaker slammed the Obama administration this week after it issued regulations that provide for a so-called "abortion surcharge" in health care plans.
The final rules, stemming from the health care overhaul, require plans that cover abortion to collect a separate fee of $1 or more directly from customers. The money would go toward abortion coverage.
The intent of the rule was to make sure taxpayer subsidies do not finance abortions.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}But pro-life advocates claimed the surcharge would still compel customers enrolled in many plans to cover the cost.
"Requiring the segregation of funds into allocation accounts -- a mere bookkeeping exercise, is a cheap political trick designed to circumvent longstanding prohibitions on taxpayer funding of abortion," Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., co-chairman of the Congressional Pro-Life Caucus, said in a statement. "This is an unprecedented break with longstanding federal policy on funding for abortion."
The law stipulates that customers in different markets will still be able to find a plan that doesn't cover abortion. To avoid paying the surcharge, they could just pick one of those plans.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Smith, though, said the policy makes insurance companies obscure information about the surcharge in their benefits materials, which could leave customers in the dark about it.
"Once enrolled, even pro-life Americans will be forced to pay for other people's abortions," he said.