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The Illinois House is currently considering House Bill 4013 that will require Illinoisans to pay for other people’s abortions through all nine months of pregnancy under Illinois’ Medicaid program. This bill also allows doctors convicted of performing abortions on women they knew were not pregnant to continue receiving taxpayer funds as a convicted criminal.
According to the pro-choice ACLU, 18 – 35% of women who qualify for Medicaid will not seek an abortion unless taxpayers pay for it. This means that lifting the decades-old ban on taxpayer-funded abortions will drastically increase the 40,750 annual abortions in Illinois. In 1977-1978, the last years Medicaid paid for abortions for any reason, taxpayers paid for 12,738 abortions at a cost of $1.8 million. Today, Medicaid only pays for abortion in the cases of rape, incest, and life/health of the mother. In 2012, taxpayers funded 256 abortions – a decline of over 12,000 abortions since taxpayers stopped paying for abortions for any reason.
While House Bill 4013 will drastically increase the number of abortions, it will also increase the amount of Medicaid funding Illinois Planned Parenthood receives despite a recent Medicaid overbilling scandal.
In 2012, Illinois Planned Parenthood paid back $367,000 in state Medicaid funds after overbilling accusations from the inspector general of the Department of Healthcare and Family Services. A 2014 Medicaid report compiled by Alliance Defending Freedom law firm showed nearly all of the 44 known external audits and reviews of Planned Parenthood affiliates in eight other states were found to be overbilling taxpayers as well. According to the report, Planned Parenthood billed Medicaid in excess of what actual services cost, charged for services not medically necessary, and dispensed Rx drugs not authorized by a physician. House Bill 4013 will reward this company by giving them more taxpayer money.
Furthermore, there is little to no oversight of the Illinois facilities that would receive increased taxpayer dollars under House Bill 4013. According to documents obtained from the Illinois Department of Public Health, no Illinois Planned Parenthood has a license nor has it received health inspections since 1999.
No wonder the majority of Americans do not support public funding for abortions.
Which Illinoisans, exactly, should pay for other people’s abortions?
What about the infertile couple nursing their broken heart following each miscarriage, now patiently waiting to adopt? Should their tax money go to pay for a stranger’s abortion?
What about the doctor who understands the science of how an unborn child’s heart begins beating at 3 weeks old and by 9 weeks has fingers and toes? Should this doctor be forced to pay for a stranger’s abortion?
What about the man and woman who are on their third abortion for the year because they engage in intercourse with no precaution or planning? Should you be forced to pay for their abortion? House bill 4013 says yes.
What about the doctor who cheated taxpayers, violated the Hippocratic oath, and illegally performed an abortion on a woman he knew was not pregnant? Should he be given your tax money to perform the abortion? House Bill 4013 says yes.
House Bill 4013 will increase abortions, give away taxpayer funds with little oversight, and fund criminal paychecks straight from the pockets of hard working Illinoisans.