(“Turning down the temperature” — Promoted by Colorado Pols)
U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) has introduced legislation to ban taxpayer-funded abortions for undocumented immigrants, according to a news release. This legislation comes after guidance from the Biden administration last month that was designed to ensure access to reproductive health care for unaccompanied minors.
According to the ACLU, “On November 10, 2022, the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) announced new guidance to ensure that unaccompanied immigrant minors have access to abortion while in ORR shelters awaiting reunification with family in the United States. The policy requires ORR to prioritize placing pregnant immigrant youth in shelters in states where abortion has not been banned, but if a minor is placed in a shelter in a state with restrictive abortion laws and requests an abortion, the policy requires timely transfer to another state to access this care.”
The proposed legislation has support from Colorado’s entire Republican congressional delegation, including Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-CO) and Rep. Ken Buck (R-CO). “The Biden administration is unlawfully using taxpayer money to transport pregnant, illegal alien children across state lines for late-term abortions,” said Boebert in a news release. “My colleagues and I have introduced bicameral legislation to end these illegal and horrific policies once and for all. Taxpayer money should never fund abortions, whether for citizens or non-citizens. Our priority at the southern border should be security and peace, not death and destruction.”
The 1976 Hyde Amendment already prevents federal funds from being used for elective abortions. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, the Hyde Amendment “blocks federal funds from being used to pay for abortion outside of the exceptions for rape, incest, or if the pregnancy is determined to endanger the woman’s life, resulting in dramatically limited coverage of abortion under Medicaid and other federal programs.”
According to the ACLU, many of the undocumented children qualify for those Hyde Amendment exceptions. “This new policy is an essential step in protecting the health and well-being of this marginalized population,” reads a Nov. 21 news release. “ORR is the government authority in charge of caring for unaccompanied immigrant minors who are detained after crossing the border to find their families in the U.S. and to seek a safer, better life. Unfortunately, many of these young people experience sexual assault in their countries of origin or on the perilous journey to the U.S., and some may enter ORR custody pregnant. This policy will help ensure that any minor who is pregnant is able to quickly and confidentially access abortion care, if she believes that is the right decision for herself and her future. Pregnant immigrant minors deserve to have their bodily autonomy respected, including while in government custody.”