President Biden Issues Executive Order to Provide for Out-of-State Abortions

On August 3, President Joe Biden issued an executive order (EO) entitled “Executive Order on Securing Access to Reproductive and Other Healthcare Services.” The EO directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to “consider actions to advance access to reproductive healthcare services, including, to the extent permitted by Federal law, through Medicaid for patients traveling across State lines for medical care.”
And that means abortion, which the EO defines as part of “reproductive healthcare services.”
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre assured reporters at a press conference that the EO does not violate the Hyde Amendment, which prohibits federal funding of domestic abortions, except in cases of rape, incest or to save the life of the mother.
“This EO will not violate the Hyde Amendment,” she said. “It is law, and we followed the law here.”
However, the EO is short on details.
The EO is designed to help women cross state lines in order to obtain abortions, and it also calls on the HHS Secretary to “consider all appropriate actions” to make sure healthcare providers comply with federal nondiscrimination law as a means to further abortion access.
The EO leaves it to the Secretary of HHS to fill in the blanks as to what the EO will look like in practice.
“We’re going to leave it to HHS to come up with the details on the specifics on how they’re going to work with states, if a state asks for a waiver and what that’s going to look like,” Jean-Pierre said. “So this is going to be in their purview.”
This EO follows quickly on the heels of another abortion directive from the White House, Executive Order 14076, issued July 8, entitled “Executive Order on Protecting Access to Reproductive Healthcare Services.” That EO directed the Secretary of HHS to submit a report identifying potential actions HHS could take to, among other things, “protect and expand access to abortion care, including medication abortion.”
Executive Order 14076 also authorized the U.S. Attorney General and the Department of Justice (DOJ) to get involved in pushing abortion on unwilling states. DOJ just recently sued the state of Idaho over its abortion law.
The full court press from the Administration to promote abortion in the wake of the demise of Roe v. Wade continues. The recent EOs from the White House serve to remind us that pro-life efforts to save preborn lives must also continue, and even intensify.
There are lives at stake.
Photo from Shutterstock.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Bruce Hausknecht, J.D., is an attorney who serves as Focus on the Family’s judicial analyst. He is responsible for research and analysis of legal and judicial issues related to Christians and the institution of the family, including First Amendment freedom of religion and free speech issues, judicial activism, marriage, homosexuality and pro-life matters. He also tracks legislation and laws affecting these issues. Prior to joining Focus in 2004, Hausknecht practiced law for 17 years in construction litigation and as an associate general counsel for a large ministry in Virginia. He was also an associate pastor at a church in Colorado Springs for seven years, primarily in worship music ministry. Hausknecht has provided legal analysis and commentary for top media outlets including CNN, ABC News, NBC News, CBS Radio, The New York Times, the Chicago Tribune, The Washington Post, The Washington Times, the Associated Press, the Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, the Boston Globe and BBC radio. He’s also a regular contributor to The Daily Citizen. He earned a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of Illinois and his J.D. from Northwestern University School of Law. Hausknecht has been married since 1981 and has three adult children, as well as three adorable grandkids. In his free time, Hausknecht loves getting creative with his camera and capturing stunning photographs of his adopted state of Colorado.
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