During a March 25 hearing for the Colorado State House Health & Human Services Committee, a Colorado legislator promoted a bill that would mandate government funding of induced abortion for women enrolled in Medicaid or the state’s Child Health Plan Plus program (ironically) on the grounds that it would save money for the state. ”A birth is more expensive than abortion,” said Colorado House Speaker Julie McCluskie (D-Dillon), one of the sponsors of SB 25-183.
At this hearing, Dr. Catherine Wheeler, AAPLOG Board Member and President of our Colorado chapter, pointed out the concerning messaging of the bill’s proponents: “Seriously, the bill’s sponsors are saying that if more babies die by abortion, it will be cheaper for the state.”
In a comment to The Christian Post, Dr. Wheeler followed up on these thoughts:
To promote induced abortion on the grounds that it’s cheaper for the government than childbirth is to demonstrate a heartbreakingly myopic attitude toward the value of Coloradans’ lives. Of course, it is cheaper in the short term for the state to kill a preborn child rather than support her and her mother through childbirth and the very vulnerable first few years of her life. But any society should recognize that caring for mothers as they raise the next generation is a worthy investment.
Citing a study published in Cureus, Dr. Wheeler noted that the majority of women who obtain abortions reported high levels of pressure to do so. “Low-income Colorado women, the majority of whom desire their babies, deserve a government that will unconditionally support their pregnancies, not push them towards termination to save money for the state.”
Dr. Tom Perille, co-founder of AAPLOG’s Colorado chapter, criticized the methodology of the impact report that concluded this bill would save Colorado money. “The analysis is so simplistic that it insults the intelligence of lawmakers who earnestly wish to understand the implications of state funding,” he told the committee. Pro-life advocates criticized the bill’s underestimation of the cost of abortion and the number of out-of-state women who might be enticed to travel to Colorado for abortions under the bill.
Dr. Michael New, professor of social sciences at the Catholic University of America conducted an alternative analysis of the bill’s impacts, in which he concluded that the bill would cost the taxpayer $2 million and increase the number of abortions by roughly 1,840 annually.
The gross monetization of human lives that this debate highlighted is merely a symptom of our overall cultural degradation of the value, dignity, and worth of EVERY human being, regardless of their age, level of development, or social circumstances. Our voices as medical experts have never been more important! Our commitment to care for our patients should not be impacted by state financial concerns or by finances in general. Additionally, the voices of Drs. Wheeler and Perille, both AAPLOG members, at that hearing were invaluable. Our voices need to be heard in every state house across the country!
The media attention that this bill has attracted emphasizes the importance of AAPLOG members making their voices heard in the public square. To bolster your confidence in public communication, we invite you to attend our FREE expert witness and media training sessions on September 2 in Kansas City, Missouri, or October 25 in Nashville, Tennessee. Learn more here.
