Activists say states keep abortion coverage in health plans

Anti-abortion activists are claiming that the Obama administration is still ignoring its promise to allow healthcare customers to opt out of plans that cover abortions.

Under ObamaCare, every state is required to offer at least one plan that does not cover abortion. But research from the Family Research Council and the Charlotte Lozier Institute has found that at least three states — with more than 100 plans altogether — are still not complying.

“The 2015 enrollment appears to be shaping up to include more abortion plans and companies switching policies to cover abortion on demand,” a coalition of conservative groups wrote in a summary of findings, shared first with The Hill.

Criticism of the elective abortion plans is heating up more than a month after an investigation by the Government Accountability Office first found that more than 1,000 plans nationally were potentially violating federal law. Just one state, Connecticut, changed its policy in light of the report after also facing a lawsuit over the issue.

Abortion activists were a powerful force in shaping the president’s landmark healthcare law, nearly derailing it as they fought against taxpayer dollars for abortion. Now, the same groups are inflamed that taxpayer dollars could have been funding abortions.

Rep. Chris Smith (N.J.), who is the Republican co-chair of the Pro-life Caucus, said he has demanded answers for months from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) with no answer.

“Can you imagine that? I’m in Rayburn. I can throw a baseball and hit HHS and we can’t get any answer from them. It’s unbelievable,” Smith told The Hill.

Still, Republicans have been unable to prove that taxpayer dollars have actually funded abortions.

“It’s hard to get that information. It’s a very good question. We don’t know,” Smith said.

Anti-abortion Republicans are also renewing the battle in light of comments by former ObamaCare consultant Jonathan Gruber, who said the law he helped shape was based on a “lack of transparency.”

– This post was updated at 5:27 p.m.