Fiscal Note
No appropriation required.
Title
Calling for increased funding for comprehensive reproductive health care.
Body
WHEREAS, women need access to safe, affordable, and comprehensive reproductive health care throughout their lives, including screening for cancer and sexually transmitted infections, contraceptive services, abortion care, prenatal care, and labor and delivery services; and
WHEREAS, reproductive health is a vital component of a woman's overall health, and reproductive freedom is vital to a woman's safety, well-being, and ability to participate equally in society; and
WHEREAS, on January 22, 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court, in a historic and landmark decision, ruled in Roe v. Wade that the U.S. Constitution safeguards a woman's ability to make her own personal medical decisions about when or whether to have children; and
WHEREAS, in the last 42 years, access to abortion care has allowed women to participate more fully in society, saved lives, and strengthened families; and
WHEREAS, we must always guard against efforts to deliberately erode the availability and affordability of abortion and undermine the protections provided by Roe v. Wade; and
WHEREAS, the majority of Americans continue to support safe, legal abortion; and
WHEREAS, federal and state laws that place obstacles in the paths of women seeking abortion care take away those women's ability to make decisions and threaten the health of families; and
WHEREAS, one such restriction is the Hyde Amendment, passed by Congress on September 30, 1976, which for nearly 39 years has impeded access to abortion care for low-income women enrolled in Medicaid; and
WHEREAS, women enrolled in Medicaid are denied coverage for comprehensive pregnancy-related care that includes abortion care, because of unnecessary and unfair bans on such coverage imposed by federal and state lawmakers; and
WHEREAS, the government, by partially or fully subsidizing health insurance and health care services for individuals who meet certain eligibility criteria, recognizes that health care is essential to protect an individual's ability to fully participate in her family, community, and society; and
WHEREAS, many women in the City of Madison, including state and federal employees, obtain insurance coverage through other public insurance programs that also restrict coverage for abortion; and
WHEREAS, all women should have insurance coverage for comprehensive reproductive health care, including abortion care, to ensure that their economic status or the source of their insurance coverage does not affect important health care decisions or access; and
WHEREAS, millions of women nationally, and hundreds of thousands in the City of Madison and the State of Wisconsin, are of reproductive age, are enrolled in public health insurance, and are therefore subject to these inequitable policies; and
WHEREAS, public health insurance should cover all of a woman's options when she is facing an unintended pregnancy, so that she is able to make a real decision about what is best for her and her family; and
WHEREAS, the City of Madison provides important support for many women to ensure that they have access to comprehensive reproductive health care, but regardless of the resources dedicated by the City of Madison, bans on coverage for abortion continue to harm many women; and
WHEREAS, it is imperative that funding of comprehensive reproductive health care be increased and that abortion be covered as part of comprehensive reproductive health care in all public insurance programs to ensure that services are accessible for women who are enrolled in such programs.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the City of Madison Common Council call upon federal and state elected officials to increase funding for comprehensive reproductive health care and to reinstate coverage for abortion services for women enrolled in public insurance programs.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this be sent to members of Madison's state legislative delegation: Congressman Mark Pocan, and Senators Ron Johnson and Tammy Baldwin.