Not surprisingly, given the intensity of the debate nationwide, the question of insurance coverage of abortion is a front-burner issue in many legislatures. During the first quarter, legislators in 23 states introduced 57 measures on the topic. Many of these measures would restrict coverage of abortion in all insurance plans in the state, while others would apply specifically to the health insurance exchanges envisioned under health care reform.
Legislators in 11 states (AL, IN, KS, MI, NE, OK, OR, SC, TX, UT and WV) have introduced 18 measures that would restrict abortion coverage under all private health insurance plans. So far this year, one measure has been adopted by a legislative chamber in South Carolina and one has been enacted in Utah. This new law limits coverage to cases of life endangerment, “serious risk of substantial and irreversible impairment of a major bodily function,” fetal defect, rape and incest; the law does not specifically require that individuals be allowed to purchase coverage through a rider. Including the new Utah law, six states restrict private abortion coverage (see Restricting Insurance Coverage of Abortion).
Coverage under health exchanges has garnered even more legislative attention. During the first quarter, legislators in 23 states (AL, AR, FL, GA, ID, IN, IA, KS, KY, MI, MT, NE, NJ, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, TX, UT, VA and WV) introduced 49 measures that apply to exchange coverage. (Of these, 14 are within the broader measures listed above that would affect all health plans in the state.) Measures have passed one legislative body in five states (AR, IN, OK, SC and VA); both chambers in Idaho and Montana; and one new law has been enacted in Utah subjecting coverage on the exchange to the same restrictions applied to other plans in the state (see above). With the addition of the new Utah law, six states restrict the insurance policies that will be offered through insurance exchanges created under health care reform (see Restricting Insurance Coverage of Abortion).
More information at the Guttmacher site:
Detailed analysis of state legislative trends in the first quarter
The current status of state policies
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