National Women's Law Center
On Sunday, the Senate passed an omnibus appropriations bill for fiscal year 2010 that gives a few of my favorite communities (namely: DC residents, comprehensive sex ed advocates, and the pro-choice community) something to celebrate. The omnibus, which passed the Senate 57-35 and includes six of the seven remaining appropriations bills for FY2010, would remove the funding restrictions that currently prohibit DC from using locally raised tax dollars to fund abortion coverage under the Medicaid program. Though the Hyde Amendment prohibits federal funding for abortion coverage under Medicaid except in cases of rape, incest, or life endangerment, states are free to use their own money to provide additional abortion coverage under Medicaid — and 23 do. Arguing against the DC abortion funding ban, Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D) commented: "The D.C. abortion rider has created severe hardships for low income women in the District. It has singled out the District and its women for unfair and unequal treatment." Delegate Norton is spot-on. While we’re gratified that these restrictions have finally been lifted, it’s painful to think of the damage they’ve already done.
The omnibus also eases the restrictions on DC’s use of federal funds for needle-exchange programs, a critical intervention strategy aimed at decreasing HIV transmission among injection drug users. This policy is particularly important for DC women, as DC has a higher AIDS rate than any state — by far.
But there’s more. In a victory for common sense, justice, and science-based public health strategies, the omnibus provides $114 million in funding for a new evidence-based teen pregnancy prevention initiative, which replaces the Community Based Abstinence Education (CBAE) program. The initiative will be implemented and administered by the newly authorized Office of Adolescent Health (OAH) in the Office of the Secretary at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The bulk of that money ($110m) will be put towards “competitive contracts and grants to public and private entities to fund medically accurate and age appropriate programs that reduce teen pregnancy.” The remaining $4m are dedicated to program evaluation funding, including longitudinal evaluations, of teenage pregnancy prevention approaches. Hooray for evidence.
The House passed the omnibus bill last week, and President Obama is expected to sign it imminently.
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