A Dose of Reality on ObamaCare

While the health care debate has largely focused on whom the candidates' plans will fund, more Americans need to understand exactly what they would fund. In a recent exchange with Senator Obama's spokesman, the group RH Reality Check posted the campaign's answers to a health care questionnaire on its website. The discussion begins with Obama's assertion, 'Reproductive health care is an essential service -- just like mental health care... And private insurers that want to participate [in the Obama plan] will have to treat reproductive health care in the same way.' According to these excerpts, Obama's plan would treat abortion as a basic health care mandate for both taxpayers and private health insurers to subsidize.

REALITY CHECK: Does Senator Obama support adolescents' access to confidential family planning and reproductive health services, without having to seek permission from their parents?

OBAMA CAMPAIGN: Yes. As the father of two daughters... Obama wants to be sure that there is access to a trained health care provider that can provide needed services or help them make good decisions.

REALITY CHECK: Does Sen. Obama... think adolescents should be able to access emergency contraception over the counter?

OBAMA CAMPAIGN: ...[H]e does believe that teenagers should be able to access EC over the counter. As noted above, he supports the right of adolescents to seek confidential family planning services.

REALITY CHECK: Does Sen. Obama support the Hyde Amendment [which bans federal funding of abortion]?

OBAMA CAMPAIGN: Obama does not support the Hyde Amendment.

REALITY CHECK: Does Sen. Obama support the continued federal funding for crisis pregnancy centers [which do not promote abortions]?

OBAMA CAMPAIGN: No.

Andrea Lynch, "Sen. Barack Obama's RH Issues Questionnaire"

[Hat tip to Prof. E.E.]