Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., is once again trying to include pro-abortion and anti-family measures into the new Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions Act, or HEROES Act.
The HEROES Act is currently 1,800 pages with a price tag of $3 trillion. Much of that funding goes to a variety of progressive legislation. This includes shoring up state governments (like New York), the forgiveness of private student loan debt, giving hazard pay to health care workers providing relief to coronavirus patients (which New York can tax), funding for COVID testing, support for farmers, help to renters, payments to American citizens, the blanket release of certain federal prisoners and alleged criminals and $25 billion to the U.S. Postal Service.
The biggest concern about the bill is its pro-abortion and anti-family policies. For example, it provides a 100% subsidy to Americans who are currently on COBRA plans, which offered to employees when they quit or are laid off from their jobs so that they can continue their health coverage. But this is being done without honoring the Hyde Amendment, a piece of legislation that prevents government funding from utilizing taxpayer money to fund abortions.
Depending on how many people are currently on COBRA, which could potentially be millions, this bill would likely chip away at the protections that the Hyde Amendment offers pro-life Americans.
The bill also identifies abortion as “essential work,” which would impact multiple state bans throughout the country.
During the coronavirus pandemic, there have been many legal battles over whether abortion should be considered an “essential health care service.” A legal consensus has not been reached, but abortion has been portrayed by the pro-abortion industry for decades as a “choice.” If it is a “choice,” doesn’t that mean that procedure isn’t essential but instead an elective surgery.
This bill, if passed, would remove this debate from the courts and the public entirely.
A pandemic should not be used as an excuse to overly expand the government and push a radical progressive and pro-abortion agenda on the rest of the country. Instead, hopefully the federal and state governments can focus on reopening the country rather than passing another stimulus package.
