Pro-Life Page

by Sarah Terzo | Washington, DC | LifeNews.com | 2/17/14 7:29 PM

Washington, DC (LiveActionNews) — In a recent article in The Criterion, Natalie Hoefer interviewed a nurse who worked at Planned Parenthood but left the abortion business with the help of clinic-worker-turned-activist Abby Johnson and local pro-lifers. The nurse, Marianne Anderson, bravely decided to come forward with her story because, as she says, she wanted to “right a wrong.” She credits the sidewalk counselors that helped her leave with giving her the courage to speak out about her experiences.

I felt so much love and acceptance in that room [when I first spoke publicly, at Right to Life of Indianapolis’ "Celebrate Life" dinner]. I wandered around there looking at how happy the people were, how much they’re really trying to help other people. I thought, “I want to be a part of that.” I thought I could start by telling my story, then maybe later I could be a sidewalk counselor.

A sidewalk counselor is a pro-life person who approaches women entering abortion clinics and offers them alternatives. Sometime sidewalk counselors hand pamphlets to the women as they enter the abortion clinic. These pamphlets usually contain information about abortion’s risks and the development of the unborn baby. Often, abortion clinics hire escorts in order to ensure that women do not speak to sidewalk counselors as they are herded into the clinic. Sidewalk counselors also reach out to the abortion clinic workers, and have been instrumental in helping some clinic workers quit. Kristin Breedlove, a former clinic administrator, attributes her conversion to sidewalk counselorswho persistently prayed for her.  Similarly, Abby Johnson went to the sidewalk counselors outside her facility for help and support when she had her conversion.

Anderson was hired by the clinic in 2010. Her job was to provide patients with “conscious sedation,” which consisted of providing intravenous sedatives and anesthesia to women who were about to have their abortions.

She reveals that the Planned Parenthood clinic injured a number of women while she worked there:

Several times, there were difficulties with abortions while I worked there, where they had to call the hospital to come pick the woman up. … A lot of the cases we had were from excessive bleeding or reactions to the sedation.

One was particularly serious:

One girl almost bled out. She was passing clots, [and] her blood pressure was dropping.

The clinic workers were instructed not to mention the word “abortion” when they called for an ambulance.

When we had to call 911 for an ambulance, we were told never to say the word “abortion” because they don’t want that broadcast. They knew that the calls were recorded, and could be made public.

They were trying to hide their abortion complications from pro-lifers in this manner, because pro-lifers often make use of 911 calls in order to document cases of malpractice in the abortion industry. For example, you can hear several 911 calls from Planned Parenthood clinicson the Operation Rescue website.

It is not unusual for clinics to try to hide abortion injuries and deaths from pro-lifers. One abortion clinic worker was documented on tape telling an ambulance driver to come to the back of the clinic without lights and sirens in order to avoid attracting attention.

In another case, clinic workers were instructed to transport injured women to the hospital in their cars instead of calling for an ambulance. Obviously, this seriously endangered women’s lives. Carol Everett, former administrator of four clinics and owner of two, described doing this in her testimonyon clinicquotes:

And he [the abortionist] went in one time, and he pulled out placenta, and he went in the second time and he went through the back of her uterus and pulled her bowel out through her vagina. We put her in the car because we didn’t want an ambulance in front of the abortion clinic and we took her to the hospital.

So abortion clinics attempting to cover-up complications is nothing new.

Anderson summed up her former workplace as follows:

It was a money-grubbing, evil, very sad, sad place to work.

Planned Parenthood claims that abortions are only three percent of what they do, but Anderson describes how clinic workers were given quotas and encouraged to sell as many abortions as they could:

We would get yelled at if we didn’t answer the phone by the third ring. They would tell us we’d be fired [if we didn’t] because they needed the money.

They would remind us in our weekly staff meeting that we need to tell everyone [who called to schedule an appointment] to avoid “those people” [the sidewalk counselors] because we need the money. We were to tell them, “Don’t make eye contact with them, and don’t stop in the driveway. If you make eye contact with them or if you stop and roll down your window, they’re going to try their darnedest to talk you out of it.”

You have to have so many [abortions] a month to stay open. In our meetings they’d tell us, “If abortions are down, you could get sent home early and not get as many hours.”

Anderson would try to give women good counseling, but got in trouble for taking too much time:

I was always getting in trouble for talking too long to the girls, asking if they were sure they wanted to do this.

They also performed late-term abortions illegally:

They would allow girls to have ultrasounds that were obviously way too far along [the legal limit for having an abortion in Indiana is 13 weeks and six days]. They said, “If they want to be seen, you just put them through, no problem,” just taking advantage [of them] to make money.

Asked which experiences stick with her, Anderson mentions several patients in particular.  One was a young girl who was being coerced and deceived into an abortion by her mother:

One young girl came in with her mom. She was about 16. Her mom had made the appointment. That’s not supposed to be how it works. It’s supposed to only be the patient who makes the appointment. I checked her in, and she thought she was there for a prenatal checkup. The mom was pushing it. She blindsided her own daughter.

It is sad that a mother would attempt to deceive her own daughter into killing her grandchild, but it is not very unusual for parents to pressure and even force their children to have abortions. In one case, in Florida, a teenage girl was driven to the clinic by her mother, who brought a gun in order to threaten her into going through with the abortion.

Anderson also talked about a possible case of sex trafficking:

This guy brought in a Korean girl. I had no doubt in my mind this girl was a sex slave. This guy would not leave her side. They could barely communicate. He wanted to make all the arrangements.

During the ultrasound, she told one of the nurses that there were lots of girls in the house, and that the man hits them. She never came back for the abortion. I always wondered what happened to her. One of my co-workers said, “You’re better off to just let it go.”

Perhaps wanting to avoid controversy or unnecessary trouble, the Planned Parenthood clinic let this woman go back to her horrible situation. Planned Parenthood has been caught on tape by Live Action being willing to cover up sex trafficking and even giving instructions to a man they thought was a pimp on how to run his sex business.

Anderson also commented on the insensitivity of one of the clinic’s abortionists:

These girls would start crying on the table, and Dr. [Michael] King [the abortion doctor for whom Anderson worked] would say, “Now you chose to be here. Sit still. I don’t have time for this.

The clinic was performing upwards of 30 abortions a day. It is not surprising that women were being rushed through their abortions.

Marianne also described how the abortionist went through the remains of suction abortions to make sure that every body part was accounted for. This is a common thing that abortionists and clinic workers have to do – if an arm or leg is left behind in the woman’s womb, or any other part of the baby or placenta, the woman can developed a severe infection. So the baby must be reconstructed after each abortion to verify that all the parts are there. Former abortionist Doctor Beverly McMillandescribes doing this in another article at Live Action.

One doctor, when he was in the POC [products of conception] room, would talk to the aborted baby while looking for all the parts. ‘Come on, little arm, I know you’re here! Now you stop hiding from me!’ It just made me sick to my stomach.

Anderson was so unhappy working at the clinic that she tried to reach out to a sidewalk counselor for help. Not surprisingly, however, the clinic workers were being watched carefully to prevent them from communicating with the pro-lifers:

One day I was coming in, and I’d written out a note to one of the [sidewalk counselors] that said, “I’ve worked here for a little over two years. I’m actively looking for something else. Please pray for me. I don’t want to be here.” All I could do was hand it to her. She tried to give me a pamphlet, but I told her no, I had to go because there are cameras that watch the drive.

Anderson eventually ordered Unplanned by former Planned Parenthood director Abby Johnson.Unplanned describes how Abby left the abortion business after seeing an unborn baby torn apart on the ultrasound screen and realizing, all at once, the horror of what she had been involved in. Anderson was inspired to contact Johnson, who put her in touch with a local contact in the pro-life movement, who began helping her look for another job.

Anderson said she never felt judged by the pro-lifers:

I never for one second felt judged or put down by anybody. I felt so much criticism from inside that building versus the love I felt [from those] on the outside.

She found a new job.

I was fired in July 2012. I was mad because I wanted to quit! I was planning on quitting just two days later.

As I was being fired, my phone was vibrating in my pocket. It was Community North [Hospital] calling about the job, to say it was looking good. They called again the next Monday and said the job was mine if I wanted it! I love my job now. I work with wonderful, Christian people. I just love it.

by Steven Ertelt | Washington, DC | LifeNews.com | 2/14/14 11:26 AM

Planned Parenthood’s president has already told the women of America that they need abortions on Valentine’s Day rather than flowers or a fancy dinner.

Now, the Maryland affiliate of the nation’s biggest abortion company is telling women they need condoms instead of a wedding ring. In the days leading up to Valentine’s Day today, Planned Parenthood Maryland tweeted out a picture of a box that would normally contain a wedding ring, replaced with a condom.

The picture contains the message, “Will you be my birth control?”

That’s typical for Planned Parenthood: all sex, no relationship.

by Steven Ertelt | Washington, DC | LifeNews.com | 2/10/14 1:42 PM

A box of chocolates? No. A nice date to a fancy restaurant? No. Flowers? No. How about a massage, doing the dishes or taking the kids for the day? Nope, not that either.

If you’re a husband or boyfriend looking for what to get for or do for your special someone for Valentine’s Day, Planned Parenthood has the answer: abortion.

In a new video featuring Cecile Richards, the CEO of the Planned Parenthood abortion business, abortion is apparently what women want for Valentine’s Day. The following is a Vine video the abortion activist is promoting on Facebook and Twitter today.

The promotion of abortion for Valentine’s Day is not surprising considering that’s jut about all it offers pregnant women. Some 92 percent of pregnant women going to Planned Parenthood get abortions.

In 2011, abortions made up 92% of Planned Parenthood’s pregnancy services, while prenatal care and adoption referrals accounted for only 7% (28,674) and 0.6% (2,300), respectively. For every adoption referral, Planned Parenthood performed 145 abortions.

“Planned Parenthood has spent much of the last few years demanding that taxpayers add millions more to their coffers, citing their non-profit status and so-called focus on women’s health,” said SBA List president Marjorie Dannenfelser. “What have we received for our money? While government subsidies to Planned Parenthood have reached an all time high, so too has the number of lives ended by this profit-driven abortion business. Destroying nearly one million children in three years is not health care and does not reflect a concern for vulnerable women and girls. As Planned Parenthood’s funding goes up, abortions increase and real health services for women go down.”

“As if these numbers weren’t already horrifying, Planned Parenthood has upped the ante even further by mandating that all affiliates provide abortions beginning this year. Americans are sick and tired of underwriting the nation’s largest abortion business. We call on Congress to immediately investigate and defund Planned Parenthood,” she added.

by Steven Ertelt | Chicago, IL | LifeNews.com | 2/7/14 4:10 PM

The Planned Parenthood abortion business has been forced to pay a $2 million settlement to the family of a black teenager it killed in a botched legal abortion in 2012.

Walter Hoye, a black pro-life leader who has closely followed the case, obtained a copy of the court order awarding the settlement. The settlement document indicates Planned Parenthood of Illinois, Northwestern Memorial Hospital, and Northwestern Medical Faculty Foundation must pay her son Alvin Jones III, who was one at the time of Reaves’ death from the botched legal abortion.

He told LifeNews today that the settlement is an acknowledgement on Planned Parenthood’s part that it took Reaves’ life, but he said he’s disappointed the abortion giant won’t be held accountable further.

“In my opinion, Planned Parenthood is guilty of criminal negligence, depraved indifference, and gross medical incompetence,” Hoye said. “Now that the case is settled, we will never know how a jury would have reacted.”

Tonya Reaves, a 24-year old woman, died from three major complications during a botched second-trimester abortion suffered at a Chicago area Planned Parenthood abortion clinic on July 20, 2012.

Operation Rescue, which obtained the full autopsy results after the failed abortion, said at the time it indicates that Reaves’ injuries were survivable if she had received proper emergency care in a timely manner.

The autopsy report is seven pages in length but it took two months for it to be released publicly, despite requests from OR and a pro-life attorneys group. Operation Rescue president Troy Newman tells LifeNews the autopsy is missing any information about the Planned Parenthood clinic that did the failed abortion as well as the name of the abortion practitioner responsible for taking Reaves’ life. Newman says these omissions give substance to suspicions that there is an on-going cover-up of Planned Parenthood’s actions that led to Reaves’ death.

It is the official opinion of the Cook County Medical Examiner that Reaves’ cause of death “is due to hemorrhage resulting from cervical dilation and evacuation due to an intrauterine pregnancy.” In plain language, Reaves bled to death as the result of a bungled D&E abortion. The pregnancy itself did not contribute to her death.

“We strongly believe that criminal charges such as Depraved Indifference, Criminal Negligence, and Criminal Malpractice are applicable in this case and we again call for a criminal investigation into the death of Tonya Reaves,” said Newman at that time. “Planned Parenthood killed her, now they must be brought to justice in a court of law.”

“As bungled as this abortion was, we believe Tonya Reaves could have survived her injuries if she had gotten immediate emergency care and if Planned Parenthood had shared medical information with the hospital related to her incomplete abortion and uterine perforation,” said Newman. “Instead, Planned Parenthood left the trauma team in the dark to solve the puzzle of Tonya’s injuries while her life ebbed away.”

Newman said the autopsy reveals the following:

• She was a healthy woman who was approximately 16 weeks pregnant at the time of her abortion, well into the second trimester.
• She suffered from an incomplete abortion. The Medical Examiner discovered pieces of placenta still attached to the inside of her womb even after a second abortion done by the hospital to remove fetal remains left by Planned Parenthood.
• She suffered a 3/16 inch uterine perforation near forcep impression marks. D&E abortions involve dismembering the baby in the womb and removing the pieces with forceps.
• She suffered an “extensive” perforation of her broad uterine ligament with a possible severing of her left uterine artery as a result of her abortion. This accounted for the internal bleeding that was discovered only too late by the hospital trauma team.
• There were 1-1.5 liters of blood and clots inside her abdominal cavity. The human body holds roughly five liters of blood. Reaves bled about 30 percent of her total volume of blood into her abdomen, and that does not account for the amount of blood lost through what was likely substantial vaginal bleeding due to the retained fetal remains.
• In a vain attempt to save her life, the hospital trauma team performed an emergency hysterectomy on Reaves.

Some news report have indicated that a contributing factor in Reaves’ death was injuries received from being pushed down a flight of stairs by her one-year old son’s father. However, the autopsy indicated, “There is no evidence of significant recent external injury.” This puts the responsibility for Reaves’ death solely on Planned Parenthood.

Newman is also concerned that Planned Parenthood is engaging in false advertising about the abortions it does at the Chicago clinic where Tonya died.

“Reaves’ abortion took place at the Loop Health Center Planned Parenthood, located at 18 S. Michigan Avenue in Chicago. Planned Parenthood’s website indicates that surgical abortions were not supposed to be available at that location, which leads to questions about whether the office was properly equipped for risky second trimester abortions,” he said.

Operation Rescue plans to file a complaint with the Illinois Department of Professional Regulation against abortionist Carolyn Hoke, who is believed to have been responsible for Reaves’ abortion. Hoke serves as the Medical Director for Planned Parenthood. One week after Reaves’ family sued Planned Parenthood of Illinois for killing Reaves, it agreed to pay the state $367,000 to settle a case against Hoke involving fraudulent over-billing of Medicaid.

In that case, abortion practitioner Caroline Hoke was accused of over-billing Medicaid an estimated $430,380 for mostly undocumented services. Hoke was the state’s fourth highest billing Medicaid physician, asking the taxpayers to fork over $3.9 million to her from 2009-2011 as she served as the Medical Director for Planned Parenthood of Illinois.

Although news reports indicate Reaves’ family has filed suit, officials with Operation Rescue and the Thomas More Society, a pro-life legal group, can find no actual evidence one has been filed. The family reportedly sued Planned Parenthood and Northwestern Memorial Hospital after Reaves received a botched second trimester abortion at a Chicago Planned Parenthood office on July 20, 2012.

The Planned Parenthood abortion business, which waited five hours before sending a woman who died from a botched legal abortion to the hospital, never called 911.

Initially, Steve Miller of the CBS news affiliate WBBM released a report showing documents released in the botched abortion death of Tonya Reaves that alarmingly showed Planned Parenthood delayed summoning emergency care for the dying woman for five and a half hours after the abortion failed.

Later John Jansen of the Pro-Life Action League, obtained documents verifying that Planned Parenthood’s Loop Health Center in Chicago did not call 911 on the day 24-year old Tonya Reaves died after having an abortion at the facility.

“Documents obtained via the Freedom of Information Act show [PDF] that only one call to 911 was made on Friday, July 20 from the building located at 18 S. Michigan, which houses Planned Parenthood and several other tenants,” Jansen said. “It’s unclear which tenant in the building placed that call, made at 12:46 p.m., but it was concerning an instance of child abuse, and thus could not possibly have been related to Tonya Reaves.”

“Planned Parenthood’s unfathomable negligence in the death of Tonya Reaves raises numerous questions that demand answers,” Jansen added. “Why didn’t Planned Parenthood call 911 immediately once Tonya Reaves started experiencing complications following her abortion?”

“Did Planned Parenthood call a private ambulance company instead of calling 911? If so, why? It was a Chicago Fire Department ambulance that ultimately transported Tonya Reaves to Northwestern Memorial Hospital — five and a half hours after her abortion. If Planned Parenthood didn’t call 911, who notified the Fire Department and told them to send an ambulance?” Jansen asked. “Does Planned Parenthood’s Loop Health Center have a medical emergency policy? If so, was it followed in the case of Tonya Reaves?”

“Most abortion facilities in the state of Illinois are subject to inspections by the Department of Public Health. But due to a loophole in the state’s complicated abortion facility regulatory scheme, all Planned Parenthood abortion clinics in Illinois are unlicensed and not subject to state inspection,’” he continued. “As a result, there is a lot we don’t know about Illinois’ Planned Parenthood facilities.”

Jansen concluded: “But we do know that 24-year old Tonya Reaves had an abortion at Planned Parenthood’s Loop Health Center and died 12 hours later — and Planned Parenthood needs to be held accountable for her death.”

At 11:00 a.m. on Friday, Reaves received a second-trimester dilation and evacuation (D&E) abortion at Planned Parenthood, located at 18 S. Michigan Ave. in Chicago. Following the abortion, Reaves began bleeding heavily and it continued at Planned Parenthood for five and a half hours before a Fire Department ambulance finally took her to Northwestern Memorial Hospital at 4:30 p.m., according to Miller.

Then, once the young woman arrived at the hospital, the reports make it appear emergency personnel had to start from scratch to figure out the extent of Reaves injuries.

“Then at 5:30 p.m., doctors performed an ultrasound, and another dilation and evacuation procedure – basically, another abortion – this time at Northwestern,” Miller reports. “But after that, there were then more problems, and pain. That warranted a new ultrasound, and a perforation was discovered. At 10:12 p.m., Reaves was taken back to surgery – and “an uncontrollable bleed was discovered,” documents say.”

by Steven Ertelt | Memphis, TN | LifeNews.com | 1/31/14 4:50 PM

Parenthood billboard near a school in Memphis, Tennessee is drawing heavy criticism from local parents, who are upset by the message it’s sending their kids.

The billboard has the message “Getting It On Is Free” and a picture of a condom — something residents of a south Memphis neighborhood don’t like. The billboard has only been up one week and is already generating controversy.

From a local news report:

“I was shocked. I was appalled that anyone would put up a picture of condom,” said Karen Wallace.

Karen Wallace works at a church nearby and has to drive by the billboard every day.

She said what is worse it’s right next to an elementary school cross walk.

“The graphic was not necessary the message was enough,” said Wallace.

A dad who saw the sign for the first time Thursday agreed and said it’s not something he wants his children to see.

“No! It ain’t nothing to send out to my kids,” said Rickey Munn.

The billboard is one of 12 Planned Parenthood has put in the county to prevent HIV and STD’s.

Steven Ertelt | Washington, DC | LifeNews.com | 1/31/14 

Nancy Pelosi will receive the Margaret Sanger award — the top honor given out by the Planned Parenthood abortion business.

Planned Parenthood Federation of America announced today that House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi will deliver remarks at the organization’s Annual Gala in Washington on march 27, where she will receive the award. Planned Parenthood is awarding Leader Pelosi the Margaret Sanger Award, the organization’s highest honor, “in recognition of her leadership, excellence, and outstanding contributions to” the pro-abortion movement during her career.

The president of the abortion business announced the award today, though she never mentioned abortion — instead couching her remarks in “women’s health.”

“On behalf of Planned Parenthood and the millions of patients we serve each year, it gives me great pleasure to announce that House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi will receive the Planned Parenthood Federation of America Margaret Sanger Award, our highest recognition of leadership, excellence, and outstanding contributions to the reproductive health and rights movement,” said Cecile Richards, President, Planned Parenthood Federation of America.

“No one is more deserving of this honor than Leader Pelosi, who has fought tirelessly throughout her career to protect and expand women’s access to health care. As the first woman to serve as Speaker of the House, Leader Pelosi recognized that women’s health is a mainstream issue impacting women and families. Her leadership in passing the Affordable Care Act and her ongoing commitment ensures that the promise of the law is realized for millions of women as the greatest advancement for women’s health in a generation,” said Richards.

Some of the previous Margaret Sanger award winners include Hillary Clinton, Katharine Hepburn, Bella Abzug, Justice Harry Blackmun, Dolores Huerta, and Dr. Ruth.

The award comes one month after Cardinal Raymond Burke, the former archbishop of St. Louis and now the chief justice at the Vatican’s highest court, said prohibiting Pelosi from receiving Communion”makes perfect sense.”

This isn’t the first time Burke has said she should not receive communion.

In a September interview with The Wanderer, a Catholic newspaper, Raymond Leo Cardinal Burke, prefect of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura in Rome, sheds light on Pelosi and communion. He issued a call for pro-abortion politicians to be denied the sacrament — saying that Catholic Canon law must be applied to them.

In July, Pelosi was at it again — with another crass comment on the abortion issue. This time, she went after pro-life Republicans saying they need a lesson in Sex Education 101. She attacked pro-life legislators in state legislatures across the nation who are passing new pro-life laws to limit abortions in places like Texas and North Carolina, saying they needed a lesson on “the birds and the bees.”

The recent comments come after Pelosi put her foot in her mouth during a press conference, calling the battle to keep late-term abortions legal sacred ground.

by Steven Ertelt | Washington, DC | LifeNews.com | 1/29/14 1:25 PM

The House of Representatives yesterday approved legislation that will put in place a complete ban on taxpayer funding of abortions that ensures abortions are not directly funded in any federal governmental program or department. The White House says President Obama would veto it.

The legislation combines several policies that must be enacted every year in Congressional battles and puts them into law where they will not be in jeopardy of being overturned every time Congress changes hands from pro-life lawmakers to those who support abortions.

The House voted 227-188 for the bill with 221 Republicans and 6 Democrats voting to ban taxpayer funding of abortions under HR 7 while 187 Democrats and one Republican voted against it.

According to the Washington Times, the president would issue a veto if the measure is somehow approved in the Senate or attached to legislation the Senate passes.

As a controversial bill banning federal abortion funding heads to the House floor this week, the Obama administration is threatening a veto if it reaches the president’s desk.

The measure, known as the “No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act,” would not only extend the longstanding ban on taxpayer-funded abortions, but go further and restrict Obamacare subsidies for those who purchase health-insurance plans covering abortions.

Supporters argue the legislation is needed to maintain the long-accepted principle that taxpayer money should not fund abortions, while critics allege the bill is simply another GOP attempt to thwart the implementation of the Affordable Care Act.

“The legislation would intrude on women’s reproductive freedom and access to health care. … Longstanding federal policy prohibits the use of federal funds for abortions, except in cases of rape or incest, or when the life of the woman would be endangered,” reads a statement of administration policy released Monday night. “This prohibition is maintained in the Affordable Care Act. … [The bill] would go well beyond these safeguards by interfering with consumers’ private health care choices.”

The statement goes on to say that the president’s senior advisers would recommend he veto the bill, introduced by Rep. Chris Smith, New Jersey Republican.

Congressman Chris Smith, a New Jersey Republican who is the lead sponsor of the bill, spoke on the House floor during debate and said it would help hold President Barack Obama accountable by ensuring no taxpayer funds are used to pay for abortions.

A majority of Americans object to the use of taxpayer money for funding abortion, according to numerous polls — including a survey CNN conducted in early April showing Americans oppose public funding of abortion by a margin of 61% to 35%.

The bill will also mitigate concerns about abortion funding in the various loopholes in the Obamacare national health care bill that various pro-life organizations warned about during debate on the law. The legislation did not contain language banning funding of abortions in its provisions and the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act would fix that problem.

The National Right to Life Committee sent a letter to House members urging support for the legislation that explains how the bill will help:

“Regrettably, however, the 111th Congress enacted the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). During consideration of that legislation, language was proposed (the Stupak-Pitts Amendment) to apply the principles of the Hyde Amendment to the multitude of programs created by the bill, and the House initially approved that language – but no such provision was part of the enacted law, due to opposition from President Obama and the Senate majority. Consequently, the enacted PPACA contains multiple provisions authorizing funding of abortion and funding of health plans that cover abortion.”

The National Right to Life letter also commented on another lesser-known provision of the tax-funded abortion ban — it’s language to protect health care professionals who don’t want to be involved in abortions.

“The bill would codify the principles of the Hyde-Weldon Amendment, which has been appended to the original Hyde Amendment on every Health and Human Services appropriations bill since 2004. This provision would solidify important protections for health care providers who do not wish to participate in providing abortions – which is especially important in light of the Obama Administration’s February 23, 2011 action rescinding the conscience protection regulation issued by the Bush Administration.”

A new Kaiser Foundation study found that 6.1 million women will gain elective abortion coverage under Obamacare through the Medicaid expansion and new federal premium subsidies. H.R. 7 would essentially codify the executive order used in 2009 by President Obama to secure the final votes needed from pro-life Democrats in order to pass the health care overhaul.

The pro-life group CatholicVote also supports the bill as do many other pro-life groups including Americans United for Life, the Susan B. Anthony List, Liberty Counsel and Family Research Council.

“This critically important legislation is called the No Taxpayer Funding of Abortion and Abortion Insurance Full Disclosure Act,” Brian Burch of CatholicVote said. “This legislation has been updated to deal with the horrible expansion of abortion that began with the implementation of Obamacare. The House is ready to lead. If they pass this bill, the pressure will be on Senate Democrats up for election this year in red states like Alaska, Arkansas, Louisiana, and North Carolina.”

UPPER MARLBORO, Maryland — Pro-Life activists argued that loneliness drives women to abortion, so addressing abortion as a social justice issue involves befriending women and helping them during and after a crisis pregnancy. A panel at the 2014 National Students for Life Convention introduced this idea, and two groups at the event prioritized it in their work.

"Abortion is a reflection that we've failed to meet the needs of women", said Cathy Ruse, senior fellow for legal studies at the Family Research Council.

Ruse cited the pro-choice Guttmacher Institute, saying that 92 percent of women who have abortions choose abortion for two overarching reasons – a lack of practical or emotional support. "They need help and they need friends," Ruse suggested. "They don't have them, so they turn to abortion." She challenged the 2,500 pro-life activists at the 2014 National Students for Life Convention to develop "a radical solidarity with women in need."

In discussing the term social justice in a panel at the conference, Ruse explained that "social" has to do with relationship, and "the most basic human need for relationship." She quoted Mother Theresa who said "being unwanted, unloved, and uncared for is a much greater poverty than the person who has nothing to eat."

"Love means being willing to give even when it hurts," explained the moderator, Kathryn Lopez, editor-at-large of National Review Online. She argued that abortion takes away both the mother and the father's chance to learn what love truly is.

Joseph Koterski, associate professor of philosophy at Fordham University, urged the pro-life audience to "go out in evangelization, go out in charity, go out to those really and truly in need, and you will speak values." Only by reaching out in love will their arguments actually convince other people.