Oregon House advances bill that would provide free abortions for residents and illegal immigrants

Members of the Oregon House of Representatives have advanced a legislation that would require health insurers to provide free abortions to their customers, including illegal immigrants.

On Saturday, the Oregon House voted 33–23 to pass the Reproductive Health Equality Act, also known as HB 3391, which would allocate $10.2 million for services related to contraception, sexually transmitted diseases and pregnancy, including vasectomies and abortion, for the 2017–2019 budget period.

The bill, which was approved without a single Republican vote, will now move to the state Senate for consideration.

The Washington Times reported that about $500,000 will be set aside for the Oregon Health Plan, the state's Medicaid program, for an estimated 22,873 women, who would be deemed eligible "except for their immigration status."

The Republicans unsuccessfully tried to block the measure by filing a motion to send it back to committee. The bill was approved as Democrats hurried to move the legislation before the end of the legislative session on July 10.

The legislation includes an abortion exemption for churches and religious organizations, such as Providence Health Plans, a Catholic-sponsored healthcare group that covers 260,000 Oregonians. The healthcare group had threatened to withdraw from the individual and group insurance markets if it is forced to provide abortions.

Republicans said that the exemption was too narrow, while the pro-life group Oregon Right to Life contended that it came with the creation of a program "that will provide free abortions to Providence plan enrollees."

Oregon House Democrats suggested that the bill is a direct response to President Donald Trump's efforts to advance a measure to defund Planned Parenthood.

"Even while the Trump Administration and Republicans in Congress are trying to strip away reproductive rights [abortion], Oregon is ensuring access regardless of income, citizenship status, gender identity, or type of insurance," the Oregon Democrats said in a statement.

Gayle Atteberry, executive director of Oregon Right to Life, described the bill as a "huge gift" to Planned Parenthood.

"This terrible legislation is just another example of how Oregon's largest abortion provider's only real concern is for their financial bottom line," she stated, as reported by Life News. "The Oregon Health Authority testified that HB 3391-B will provide almost $500,000 more for abortions. Make no mistake: most of this money is going to Planned Parenthood," she added.

Shortly after the passage of HB 3391, the House successfully blocked a GOP-sponsored legislation that would have banned late-term abortions "undertaken solely because of the known or suspected sex of the unborn child."