Senate Votes to Continue Ban On Federal Employees' Abortion Coverage

WASHINGTON ­ On July 1, 1999, the U.S. Senate voted 47-51 to continue an existing ban on coverage of most abortions under federal employees' health insurance plans.

The Senate was considering the Fiscal Year 2000 appropriations bill for the Treasury Department and certain other federal agencies (S. 1282), which includes funding for the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) program. As approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee this year, the bill did not contain a traditional provision prohibiting these plans from paying for abortions (except to save the life of the mother, or in cases of rape or incest). That pro-life provision has been part of the annual appropriations bill for most of the last 16 years, except for an interruption during the first two years of the Clinton-Gore Administration.

Pro-life Senator Mike DeWine (R-Ohio) offered an amendment to restore the traditional pro-life language.

"For federal employees, the protections guaranteed under Roe v. Wade are seriously jeopardized" by the DeWine Amendment, argued pro-abortion Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wa.). "Financial barriers can be just as effective for many people as simply overturning Roe v. Wade."

"On the average health plan in the federal government, 73 percent of the cost is paid for by the government, which means 73 percent of the cost is paid for by the taxpayers," DeWine responded. "We should not have this money involuntarily taken from taxpayers to pay for abortions, which violates the conscience of many taxpayers."

Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), an opponent of the DeWine Amendment, said that "about 1.2 million women of reproductive age depend on the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program for their medical care."

Pro-abortion Senator Barbara Boxer (D-Ca.) then moved to table (kill) the DeWine Amendment. That motion failed, 47-51, on the roll call shown here (official Senate roll call no. 197). The Senate then formally adopted the DeWine Amendment on a voice vote. Thus, the pro-life policy was retained.

KEY

X Pro-life vote

0 Pro-abortion vote

? Absent or not voting

Alabama

Shelby R (R) X

Sessions J (R) X

Alaska

Stevens T (R) O

Murkowski F (R) ?

Arizona

McCain J (R) ?

Kyl J (R) X

Arkansas

Lincoln B (D) O

Hutchinson T (R) X

California

Feinstein D (D) O

Boxer B (D) O

Colorado

Campbell B (R) O

Allard W (R) X

Connecticut

Dodd C (D) O

Lieberman J (D) O

Delaware

Roth W (R) X

Biden J (D) X

Florida

Graham B (D) O

Mack C (R) X

Georgia

Coverdell P (R) X

Cleland M (D) O

Hawaii

Inouye D (D) O

Akaka D (D) O

Idaho

Craig L (R) X

Crapo M (R) X

Illinois

Durbin R (D) O

Fitzgerald P (R) X

Indiana

Lugar R (R) X

Bayh E (D) O

Iowa

Grassley C (R) X

Harkin T (D) O

Kansas

Brownback S (R) X

Roberts P (R) X

Kentucky

McConnell M (R) X

Bunning J (R) X

Louisiana

Breaux J (D) X

Landrieu M (D) O

Maine

Snowe O (R) O

Collins S (R) O

Maryland

Sarbanes P (D) O

Mikulski B (D) O

Massachusetts

Kennedy E (D) O

Kerry J (D) O

Michigan

Levin C (D) O

Abraham S (R) X

Minnesota

Wellstone P (D) O

Grams R (R) X

Mississippi

Cochran T (R) X

Lott T (R) X

Missouri

Bond C (R) X

Ashcroft J (R) X

Montana

Baucus M (D) O

Burns C (R) X

Nebraska

Kerrey B (D) O

Hagel C (R) X

Nevada

Reid H (D) X

Bryan R (D) O

New Hampshire

Smith R (R) X

Gregg J (R) X

New Jersey

Lautenberg F (D) O

Torricelli R (D) O

New Mexico

Domenici P (R) X

Bingaman J (D) O

New York

Moynihan D (D) O

Schumer C (D) O

North Carolina

Helms J (R) X

Edwards J (D) O

North Dakota

Conrad K (D) X

Dorgan B (D) X

Ohio

DeWine M (R) X

Voinovich G (R) X

Oklahoma

Nickles D (R) X

Inhofe J (R) X

Oregon

Wyden R (D) O

Smith G (R) X

Pennsylvania

Specter A (R) O

Santorum R (R) X

Rhode Island

Chafee J (R) O

Reed J (D) O

South Carolina

Thurmond S (R) X

Hollings E (D) O

South Dakota

Daschle T (D) O

Johnson T (D) O

Tennessee

Thompson F (R) X

Frist B (R) X

Texas

Gramm P (R) X

Hutchison K (R) X

Utah

Hatch O (R) X

Bennett R (R) X

Vermont

Leahy P (D) O

Jeffords J (R) O

Virginia

Warner J (R) X

Robb C (D) O

Washington

Gorton S (R) X

Murray P (D) O

West Virginia

Byrd R (D) O

Rockefeller J (D) O

Wisconsin

Kohl H (D) O

Feingold R (D) O

Wyoming

Thomas C (R) X

Enzi M (R) X