Kansas Republican Sen. Pat Roberts wants the Obamacare exchanges to fully disclose which participating health insurance plans cover abortion.
“Americans have a right to know if a plan they are purchasing covers abortion,” Roberts said Wednesday. “Millions of pro-life Americans oppose the use of their money to cover abortion services, but as current law is written, it is difficult to obtain information about which exchange plans provide such services.”
Roberts and 14 of his Republican collegues introduced a bill Wednesday to require the exchanges to prominently offer information about which plans cover abortion. The legislation called the “Abortion Insurance Full Disclosure Act” also requires the exchanges reveal the amount of the so-called abortion surcharge, or at least a dollar a month that goes toward funding abortions.
There is a similar bill by the same name, introduced by New Jersey Republican Rep. Chris Smith, pending in the House.
Joining Roberts as co-sponsors of the bill are Republicans Sens. Jim Inhofe, Chuck Grassley, Marco Rubio, Mike Enzi, Roger Wicker, Mike Johanns, Orrin Hatch, James Risch, John Barrasso, Dan Coats, Deb Fischer, Rand Paul, Thad Cochran and John Boozman.
“The failings of Obamacare are painfully clear from loss of coverage to increased premiums, but the secrecy in the law raises serious moral and ethical issues,” Roberts added in his statement. “We need transparency. Consumers have a right to know what these fees are paying for so that they can choose an insurance plan that meets their needs and is in line with their beliefs and values.”