The Hyde Amendment and Public Funding for Abortion
In 1976, Congress passed the Hyde Amendment, a law that states that federal dollars cannot pay for abortion unless the woman’s health is in immediate danger. In 1993, coverage for pregnancies that are the result of rape and incest was added under this Amendment. Before the Hyde Amendment, federal dollars paid for one third of abortions; since then, they have paid for virtual none.1 Each year, the Hyde Amendment is reauthorized as a part of appropriations bills for the Department of Labor and the Department of Health and Human Services. Who’s affected by the Hyde Amendment? Although abortion is often covered by private insurance plans, nearly eight in ten low income women aged 15-44 are not privately insured. (1) While four in ten low income women have health care coverage under Medicaid, Medicaid uses federal funds so under the Hyde Amendment can not cover most abortions. (2) Without insurance coverage, a woman needs to come up with a substantial amount of money to pay for an abortion, around $550 for a first trimester abortion. If she is even able to obtain this money, it often means she will have an abortion several weeks later than a woman who is covered by private insurance. As a pregnancy progresses past the first trimester, the price of an abortion increases every week. When a woman finally has enough money to pay for a first trimester abortion, she may have already slipped into the second trimester and must continue saving for a higher amount. As many as one in three poor women seeking an abortion cannot raise enough money in time and are forced to carry their pregnancies to term. (3) The Hyde Amendment and Providers For many providers, offering Medicaid funded abortions has become extremely difficult. Many times Medicaid reimburses providers at a lower rate then their regular fees. Also, it can take a long time for the Medicaid reimbursement to come through. Thus, states without expanded abortion funding have considerably fewer providers who will offer Medicaid funded abortions. This decline in providers is one more barrier for low-income women. More Federal Restrictions Aside from Medicaid bans and insurance restrictions, federal policies also deprive specific groups of disadvantaged women of their right to an abortion. Namely, Native American women and women in prison are affected by these policies. Indian Health Service denies women abortions except in cases of life endangerment, rape, or incest, and even then they rarely pay for abortion. In addition to the problem of funding, Native American women on reservations are usually geographically isolated. Tribal lands may not be served by public transportation or private bus lines, and abortion services are often far away in urban areas. While federal policies keep funding away from women in federal prisons, many state prisons and local jails refuse to fund abortions as well. Only two states have a clear policy of paying for abortions for women in prison who have been raped. Also, they often require women to pay the costs of transportation and the guards’ time to take them to a clinic. This is a heavy and at times impossible burden, especially considering prisons located in rural areas. State Laws Under Hyde All states are required to fund abortions performed in cases of rape or incest, or in order to save a woman’s life or health. In spite of the Hyde Amendment, 18 states pay for abortions outside of these specifications. Still, this has done little to improve the situation for many women.
1 - Guttmacher Institute, “Abortion in Women’s Lives” 2 - Guttmacher Institutes, “Abortion in Women’s Lives” 3 - National Network of Abortion Funds, “Legal but Out of Reach” | 
