GRAVE CONCERNS FOR CATHOLICS OVER HEALTH CARE REFORM LEGISLATION

The Catholic Church has long recognized the need for reform of America’s health care system. For decades, the Church has advocated the principle that all people should have access to quality health care, and has placed a special emphasis on the plight of the poor in this regard.

Right now, President Obama and his allies in Congress are promoting legislation that would dramatically overhaul America’s health care system. There are actually multiple versions of health care reform legislation under consideration, each of which is enormously long and complicated. What is clear, however, is that the primary bill in the House of Representatives contains unacceptable language giving the Secretary of Health & Human Services (currently Kathleen Sebelius) the power to make unlimited abortion a mandated benefit in the “public option” – the public health insurance plan the government would manage nationwide.

The House bill fundamentally alters the status quo whereby no federal program mandates coverage for elective abortions, or subsidizes health plans that include such abortions. Under the House bill, anyone choosing the public option, which will likely include low-income Americans, will be forced to pay directly and specifically for abortion coverage in the government plan.

Thus becomes clear the danger of expanding federal government control over health care, when the federal government is so hostile to our values with respect to life. Many concerned Catholics believe that any public plan will inevitably lead to taxpayer financed abortion. Yet others fear that without more government involvement, those unable to afford health insurance will be left at the mercy of the free market and the profit motive.

Regardless of one’s views on the particulars of health care reform, it is imperative that all Catholics in Kansas contact their U.S. Representatives and U.S. Senators to inform them that any taxpayer funding of abortion is completely and utterly unacceptable. By including these or any other pro-abortion provisions in the final bill, Congress will demonstrate that it is not interested in genuine health care reform. If the legislation becomes a vehicle for expanded access to abortion, it must, and will, be defeated.

It is also important that members of Congress understand that health care reform legislation should not be paid for at the expense of those near the end of life. It is often those, whether elderly or terminally ill, with the highest costs of care who are also most vulnerable to false notions of being a burden to loved ones and society. There is furious debate at this very moment over whether part of the health care reform legislation before Congress would have the effect of encouraging cost-cutting by euthanasia. There should be no grey area. Upon returning to work in September, Congress should act swiftly to ensure that all Americans can feel confident that health care reform is in the service of preserving life, not ending it. Members of Congress are home right now for the August congressional recess, listening very carefully to the views of their constituents in order to gauge what the voters will be willing to support. Now is the time to be heard. Catholics should make their views known respectfully, but firmly. We seek health care reform that improves access for those who cannot currently afford coverage, but unequivocally reject any policies that would require unwilling Americans to fund the evil of abortion.