Christian Action Commission

Senator Roger Wicker introduces pro-life bill

In a recent letter to Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS) I commended him for introducing the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act (S. 906), companion legislation to the widely supported House-passed H.R. 3, which would establish a government-wide statutory prohibition on elective abortion funding.

If enacted, the legislation would codify a patchwork of policies, many of which presently must be reauthorized as riders to annual appropriations bills, regulating federal funding of abortion.

Southern Baptists’ Ethics & Religious Commission fully supports making permanent such policies as the Hyde Amendment, which prohibits funding for elective abortion under programs funded through the Department of Health and Human Services; the Helms Amendment, which prohibits funding for abortion as a method of family planning overseas; the Smith FEHBP Amendment, which prohibits funding for elective abortion coverage for federal employees; and the Dornan Amendment, which prohibits use of congressionally appropriated funds for abortion in the District of Columbia. Further, we are grateful the bill would ensure key right of conscience protections by codifying the Hyde-Weldon conscience clause, which bars recipients of federal funding from discriminating against health care providers for refusing to provide, pay for, or refer for abortions.

We find it unconscionable that a single taxpayer dollar be funneled to pay for an abortion. With the adoption of this important legislation, our concerns on abortion funding would be significantly abated.

I am thankful for elected officials who are willing to demonstrate their commitment to guarding against taxpayer-funded abortion.

I am also grateful for the leadership demonstrated by Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT) in introducing the Protect Life Act (S. 877), which would bar federal funding of elective abortion under health care reform.

Foremost among our many concerns with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act enacted in 2010, often referred to as “Obamacare,” is its failure to prohibit federal funding of abortion under reform, a violation of the consciences of millions of Southern Baptists and other Americans. We believe that any health care reform must include, at the very least, explicit language excluding elective abortion services. As you know, the reform includes no statutory language to prevent such fiscal abuses, including federal subsidies to insurance policies that cover abortion and mandates that private insurance plans cover abortion.

The Protect Life Act is a necessary antidote to these alarming aspects of the law. By statutorily applying the Hyde Amendment to the health care law, the Protect Life Act would ensure no federal dollars are used for elective abortion under health care reform. This would allay many concerns among Southern Baptists regarding abortion funding.

Further, we are grateful that the Protect Life Act addresses grievous omissions in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act on the right of conscience for health care providers. We agree that the codification of the Hyde-Weldon Amendment to the reform, ensuring that health care providers and workers are protected from discrimination by the government at the local, state, and federal levels for refusing to participate in abortion services, is critically needed.

It is critically important that Southern Baptists, who value the sanctity of every human life, convey to their elected representatives the importance of promoting a culture of life and, in particular, the necessity of ensuring that Americans are not forced to fund abortion on demand.

This article is reprinted with permission from The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission.

The following response is submitted by: Darrin Priest /

It is horrible you that you don’t care enough for the women of this nation to let them decide what is right for their bodies and future to make their own decision on this topic.