When she learned that she was carrying a baby with almost no brain and no chance of survival, a devastated young Navy wife from Everett pleaded with a federal court in Seattle to force her military medical program to pay for an abortion...
She won her case and had the abortion. But more than two years later, the federal government continues to fight her, trying to get the woman and her sailor husband to pay back the $3,000 the procedure cost and trying to cast in stone a ban on government-funded abortions.
The government is doing no more than using this woman’s tragedy as a way to enforce a larger anti-choice agenda; it’s totally reprehensible.
Apparently this is being seen as a bit of a “sleeper case,” no one is paying attention now but when it hits it’s going to be huge--so make sure to check out the whole article.
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After reading the full article I felt very sorry that family.
It seems to me that the court, did the right thing in expediting the payment.
Whether or not they should have to pay it back, doesn't strike me as a womans choice issue as much of a womans healthcare/insurance issue.
There was never a question of whether the woman would be allowed to have an abortion, it was a question of if her government insurance would pay for it.
It isn't the government that is paying anyway, it's a government contracted insurance company. Tricare provides insurance for government empoyees/military and their families. Why should this case be any different than any other non-covered procedure?
As far as the government providing money for non-covered Tri-care claims, I believe there is plenty of precedent and I hope that that family will not have to pay back the money.
Tri-care doesn't have any political leanings as far as I am aware. However, I tend to agree that
we start getting into very dangerous waters when we give government control like this. Should woman on welfare be allowed to have abortions at government expense?
The government should not be placed in a position to pay for procedures where the decision to end a human life has a qualitative value. I personaly don't trust the government buracracy or the court system to make moral decisions. Look at the whole Terri Schiavo fiasco in florida. That is the purpose of the legislature. Our elected representatives are supposed to make law based on our morals.
Actually I've very suprised that her case hasn't been talked about on this blog.
There are two views, right?
tfreridge -
I personaly don't trust the government buracracy or the court system to make moral decisions
hmmm, you know, I completely agree ... why do you think I am prochoice? *wink*
But the Schiavo case has been hideous, and honestly I don't think unrelated to issues of choice. What the Repubs did this week was hideous, and insanely frightening.