Politicians in Michigan Join Other States in Bending the Rules to Pass Unpopular and Dangerous Abortion Restrictions

WASHINGTON, DC — Following in the footsteps of states like Texas, North Carolina, and Ohio, where politicians have bent and broken the rules to push through attacks on women’s access to health care, the Michigan state Senate and House have used underhanded tactics to pass yet another dangerous and deeply unpopular restriction on women’s health — legislation that, if enacted, would amount to a total ban on private insurance coverage of abortion.

Michigan's Republican Governor Rick Snyder vetoed a similar proposal when it was passed last year, saying it went "too far." In order to ignore the will of the people and bypass the Governor, Michigan politicians have invoked a rarely used legislative loophole to enact veto-proof laws. This has only been done five times in state history — and three of those times it has been used to restrict women's access to health care.

Following is a statement from Cecile Richards, President, Planned Parenthood Action Fund:

"What’s happening in Michigan is part of an outrageous and troubling trend. In just the last five months, politicians in Texas, North Carolina, Ohio, and Michigan have broken or bent the rules to jam through abortion restrictions that the public overwhelmingly opposes.

"These extreme restrictions are so unpopular that politicians can’t pass them through the regular democratic process. Instead, they’re using every trick in the book — votes in the middle of the night, special sessions, and procedural loopholes — in order to pass these measures.

"The vast majority of the public wants women and their doctors — not politicians — to make medical decisions and set health care regulations."

ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND

According to researchers at the Guttmacher Institute, only eight states have an extreme insurance coverage ban statute like this today.

The Michigan Section of the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists opposes the abortion coverage ban because it "would prevent insurance companies from covering medically-necessary abortion services that save women’s lives."