Georgia on Friday became the latest state to whittle away at family choice — and this cut didn’t even receive legislative votes.
Instead, the Georgia Department of Community Health made a new policy Thursday to ban coverage of abortions, except when the life of the mother is in danger, for those enrolled in the state employee health insurance plan. That’s even more restrictive than federal guidelines for Medicaid, which include abortions for rape and incest.
The policy, which takes effect in January, completely bypasses state lawmakers, who didn’t take action on similar legislation earlier this year. And Gov. Nathan Deal took credit for finding a way to accomplish the bypass for what he called a worthy goal.
“Today’s vote by the Department of Community Health board shows our state’s commitment to reducing the number of abortions in our state by ensuring that state taxpayers aren’t paying for a procedure that many find morally objectionable,” Deal said Friday.
Deal is electioneering, not saving money.