Letter to Alex Azar, Secretary for the Department of Health and Human Services - Members of Congress to HHS: Don't Penalize California for Providing Abortion Care

Letter

Dear Secretary Azar:

We write to strongly object to the recent announcement that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Civil Rights (OCR) plans to rescind federal funding from California based on its requirement that health insurers provide coverage for abortion care.

We are disappointed that, once again, the administration is choosing to restrict women's access to comprehensive reproductive care instead of allowing states to achieve the best possible health outcomes for women and families.

Indeed, penalizing California for its efforts to ensure women's access to comprehensive reproductive care runs counter to HHS' efforts to improve health outcomes and reduce health care costs. Several studies have shown that abortion restrictions are more likely to lead to health and safety risks for women, especially women of color. Research has also shown that women denied an abortion are more likely to experience economic insecurity lasting years, leaving them at much greater risk for adverse health outcomes.

California's abortion coverage requirement is a commonsense way of ensuring women are empowered to make their own health care decisions. Notably, when

California clarified that current law required all fully insured health plans to cover abortion services, every insurer in the state promptly complied. This is not unordinary. Absent political interference, the majority of private insurance plans cover abortion services.

Your administration's policy of penalizing states undermines women's ability to access health care and control their own bodies. We ask that you immediately reverse course and not penalize California for providing comprehensive health care coverage to women, including abortion services.

Sincerely,