Celebrate the lives saved by the Hyde Amendment on its 38th anniversary

Today is the 38th anniversary of the Hyde Amendment. Despite being a main target for many years of abortion advocates, it's been re-approved by Congress every year. It prevents federal tax dollars from directly paying for most abortions. Preventing federal tax dollars from paying for abortion save lives, millions of lives.  

A similar law in Michigan saved approximately 10,000 lives the first year it was in effect.  Case in point: In 1988, Michigan tax dollars were used to pay for abortions until December 11, 1988.  There were 46,747 reported abortions in Michigan in 1988.  Michigan had a reported abortion ratio (the number of abortions for every 1,000 live births) of 334.8 and a reported abortion rate (the number of abortions occurring in Michigan per 1,000 Michigan women aged 15-44) of 21.0. 

In 1989, these numbers changed dramatically as our Michigan tax dollars were no longer paying for abortions.  Reported abortions dropped by more than 10,000 to 36,557.  The abortion ratio dropped to 246.7 and the abortion rate dropped to 16.5.  In 1989, the number of live births also rose by 8,529 compared to 1988.

If ending tax funded abortions in Michigan saved 10,000 lives in one year, imagine how many lives 38 years of the Hyde Amendment (which effects the whole nation) has saved. 

Today is a day to celebrate the millions of lives saved by the Hyde Amendment and continue in our efforts to uphold the sanctity of human life. 

Start With Life film is exciting, new resource for churches

Start With Life is a thought-provoking short film about the battle of maintaining and advancing respect for human life. The spectrum of life comes alive with the visual images and scenes to which we can all relate. Deep down we know we must Start With Life.

Every person is equal under the law, and at crucial points in our country's history, this idea has given our nation a hope and vitality unlike any other on earth. Every new generation has had to come to terms with how to put this idea into practice.

Help others Start With Life. This film will remind them of ways they can join the battle of protecting the unalienable right to life. Every human being bears the image of God and is deserving of protection.

To show the 2-minute 22-second Start With Life film to your church, study group, organization or ministry, please contact Right to Life of Michigan at info@rtl.org or by calling the Right to Life of Michigan State Central Office at 616-532-2300.

The film is also available for viewing from the Right to Life of Michigan YouTube Channel at http://www.youtube.com/user/rtlmich

ELECTIONS 2014 

Judge finds Michigan abortionist "failed to adhere to the most minimal standards of cleanliness"

For years, abortionist Robert Alexander ran a filthy abortion clinic in Muskegon and his clinic was only shut down when authorities investigated a break-in at the clinic and discovered the horrific conditions.  Now, Alexander is on the brink of losing his medical license after a September hearing exposed his practices.   

Operating room at Alexander's clinic via MLive

After the hearing, Administrative Law Judge Shawn Downey issued a proposal for decision which did not look too kindly on former Muskegon abortionist Robert Alexander's excuses for his closed abortion clinic's disgusting state. Alexander blamed his staff, contractors, and his landlord for the mess. Alexander even accused prolifers of breaking into his clinic and creating months of general filth overnight.

Judge Downey found that Alexander was not a credible witness and noted that the filthy conditions at the clinic had been there for an extended time according to Alexander's previous employees. 

He also found that the Bureau of Health Care Service proved Alexander is guilty of both negligence and incompetence under Michigan's Public Health Code.  The Michigan Board of Medicine will now decide how to discipline Alexander. 

PDF OF DOWNEY'S PROPOSAL FOR DECISION 

HT: LifeNews

"Safe, legal and rare" is out and the abortion absolutists are in

At the Gospel Coalition, Trevin Wax discusses the "New Abortion Absolutists" and how certain abortion advocates have moved away from the "safe, legal and rare" mantra and are now embracing arguments attempting to eliminate the social stigma attached to abortion. 

Why leave behind words like “rare” and “tragic?” Because speaking of abortion this way lends credence to the pro-life position that there is something wrong with ”terminating a pregnancy.” If the abortion-rights agenda is to succeed, then, abortion must be de-stigmatized. And nothing will remove the stigma from abortion faster than making it common and celebrated......

The agenda for abortion absolutists is clear. We must dispense with the mystery and gravitas surrounding a woman’s decision to terminate a pregnancy. It is time to talk frankly about the abortion procedure as if it were just a normal part of a woman’s range of reproductive health choices.

FULL STORY

Government study shows how disconnected Congressman Gary Peters is from reality of abortion and Obamacare

Michigan deserves better 

 

The Government Accountability Office released a study which confirms tax dollars are being used to subsidize abortion in Obamacare. The study shows that elective abortion coverage in the vast majority of plans studied "is not subject to any restrictions, limitations, or exclusions."

After the passage of Obamacare, prolife people and members of Congress feared their tax dollars and insurance premiums would be used to pay for elective abortions in Obamacare. These concerns were routinely dismissed by the Obama administration and abortion advocates like Congressman Gary Peters.

After voting against legislation which would have prevented tax dollars from being used to subsidize abortion coverage, Congressman Gary Peters issued a press release which claimed "the fact remains that taxpayer dollars are not used for abortions" and "(t)here have been GAO audits...(that) have concluded that the law of the land is being obeyed. No federal funds are being used for abortions" and the legislation is "completely unnecessary."

The GAO has now released a study showing concerns were completely valid regarding tax dollars being used to subsidize abortion in Obamacare. The GAO study also shows that Congressman Peters was completely wrong.

Right to Life of Michigan President Barbara Listing said, "Michigan deserves better than politicians who blindly and thoughtlessly stand behind an administration willing to mislead so many people. Abortion funding could have easily been removed from Obamacare. Politicians like Gary Peters voted against those straight-forward bills." 

The GAO study can be found at the following web address:

 http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-14-742R

Gary Peters' Press Release from October 13, 2011 can be found here:

 http://www.peters.house.gov/common/popup/popup.cfm?action=item.print&itemID=435

GAO study affirms necessity of Abortion Insurance Opt-Out Act

Over the summer of 2013, prolife citizens of Michigan initiated legislation to opt-out Michigan from using our tax dollars and insurance premiums to pay for abortions by collecting more than 300,00 signatures from registered voters.

A new study from the Government Accountability Office reaffirms the necessity of their actions and Michigan's law by finding the vast majority of insurance plans in their study aren't separating the cost of abortion insurance from the rest of the insurance as President Obama promised in an executive order.

The Government Accountability Office said in a report released late Monday that only 1 of 18 insurers it reviewed was separately itemizing a charge for coverage of elective abortions on enrollees' bills.

That detail is important because the original compromise that President Barack Obama sealed with anti-abortion Democrats stipulated that no federal funds would be used to pay for elective abortions.

This study proves that insurance companies which include the standard coverage of abortion aren't separating the costs of covering abortion from the rest of the insurance premium just as prolife people had feared.  

The study also proves a number of opponents of the Abortion Insurance Opt-Out Act were clearly wrong to attack the motives and sincerity of prolifers. 

Speaking in opposition to the Abortion Insurance Opt-Out Act on December 11, 2013, State Senator Gretchen Whitmer claimed prolife concerns about Obamacare paying abortions were false.

"They told the public this was about preventing Obamacare from paying for abortions. Bull." 

On the same day, State Senator Bert Johnson claimed, 

"The Affordable Care Act includes a mechanism to ensure that public funds are not used to perform elective abortions and includes language reinforcing the Hyde Amendment."

State Representative Kate Segal also claimed prolifers were lying about concerns of tax dollars being used to subsidize abortions in her testimony. 

I am ashamed that the supporters of this proposal can’t be bothered with facts – repeating the bold-faced lie that their tax dollars are somehow being used for abortions, despite the fact that the federal Hyde Amendment has banned tax dollars from being spent on elective abortions since 1977 and that Michigan law already does so, as well.

State Senator Whitmer, State Senator Johnson and State Representative Segal owe apologies to prolife people of Michigan for attacking them and their motives when they clearly were uninformed about Obamacare, the Hyde Amendment and whether tax dollars would be used to subsidize abortions.

Abortion ends the life of a human being preparing to be born.  This fact is the reason why prolife people do not want their tax dollars and insurance premiums used for abortions.  When will President Obama keep the promise he made in his executive order?

The trial of abortionist Robert Alexander

by Genevieve Marnon, Right to Life of Michigan Public Affairs Associate

Operating room in Alexander's clinic (via MLive.com)

Last week the notorious abortionist Robert Alexander was on trial in front of an administrative law judge because of allegations of incompetency and negligence stemming from the closure of his Muskegon clinic in December of 2012 by the fire marshal. On behalf of the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs an assistant attorney general laid out a stunning amount of evidence and expert witness testimony detailing the egregious conditions that were uncovered during an investigation of a break-in at Alexander's clinic on Dec. 26, 2012.

Those who have followed Alexander's career weren't surprised to hear the allegations, but even seasoned investigators seemed distressed by the dozens of health and safety violations which were found at the clinic.  The prosecution presented 87 photos showing used needles on the ground, unsterilized surgical tools, rusty equipment, biohazard bags stacked up in procedure rooms, unsecured patient files, buckets of fluid containing 

“fleshy” substances and dozens of fire hazards.

When it came time for Alexander's testimony, he rambled and preached from the stand and had to be reprimanded several times to “just answer the question.”  He dodged and obfuscated questions and contradicted himself repeatedly. He even went on to describe his long standing bi-polar disorder and suggested that he should be excused from the allegations because of the American's with Disabilities Act.

When asked about his competency in the face of the overwhelming evidence against him, Alexander claimed prolife extremists broke in and staged the scene.  He then blamed his employee and her husband for not cleaning as they had been contracted to do.  Finally, he claimed the deplorable conditions existed because he was in the process of closing his clinic and the procedure room in question was simply being used for storage.

The expert witnesses disagreed with all accusations by Alexander that the scene had been staged and were able to show the conditions found at the clinic demonstrated a history of negligence.

It took the judge only one week to determine Alexander was guilty of both negligence and incompetence.  Now it is up to the Board of Medicine to take the judge's opinion into consideration as it decides whether Alexander's license will be revoked and what other sanctions will be placed on him. The Board Review will take place on Wednesday, September 17, 2014.

Put prolife values first when voting

 by Right to Life of Michigan President Barbara Listing

“Why do you have to get involved in politics?” That’s a question I get from people who disagree with our endorsement of candidates. It’s a fair question. Many citizens are unhappy with their elected officials, feeling they are unresponsive or once elected change their positions. We needed to be actively engaged in vetting and supporting candidates because that is one way to impact the abortion culture. Prolife bills need to be passed; pro-abortion bills need to be defeated. That only happens when men and women with prolife values are sent to Lansing and Washington D.C.

We must always protect the most defenseless members of our human family. A vital way of protecting others is through our political action activities. Certainly our counterparts, the pro-abortion alliance of Planned Parenthood, NOW, Emily’s List and others, are actively recruiting and financially supporting pro-abortion candidates. What would happen if we refused to engage and left our prolife candidates without any support?

Our nation’s policy of abortion on demand touches us all whether directly or indirectly. We all know women and families who have been heartbroken over abortion. The loss of so many children has affected our state and national institutions and policies, from school closings to social security concerns.

Think about this scripture passage from Psalms: “You have rocked the country and split it open; repair the cracks in it, for it is tottering.”

We are called to repair the wrongs created through the U.S. Supreme Court abortion decisions which have caused so much harm and suffering. We do that through education and outreach. We do that through political action by endorsing and supporting prolife candidates. We do that by then lobbying those prolife legislators to enact protective laws. Every life has meaning; so does every vote. Let us put our prolife values first when voting. Make your vote count in repairing the cracks.

Obama Administration will continue lawsuit against Little Sisters of the Poor

It looks like the Obama Administration may still be in court against the Little Sisters of the Poor, after slightly amending the HHS Mandate following a loss at the U.S. Supreme Court.

The government is still trying to force the nuns to either violate their deeply held religious convictions or pay crippling fines to the IRS.

“Religious ministries in these cases serve tens of thousands of Americans, helping the poor and homeless and healing the sick. The Little Sisters of the Poor alone serve more than ten thousand of the elderly poor. These charities want to continue following their faith. They want to focus on ministry—such as sharing their faith and serving the poor—without worrying about the threat of massive IRS penalties,” said Adele Keim, Counsel at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, which represents the Little Sisters.

FULL STORY