Invigorated by a new 4-3 majority, Republicans on the Wake County Board of Commissioners plan to vote Monday to ban taxpayer funds from being used to pay for county employees’ abortions.
The move is sure to reignite a debate from last winter over whether health insurance plans should cover elective abortion, which are those deemed medically unnecessary and often used as a form of birth control. It also could be the first demonstrable sign of the GOP’s newfound clout after winning a majority on the commission Nov. 2.
“The decision to abort is one we’re saying we’re not going to pay for with taxpayer dollars, not on an elective basis,” said Republican commissioner Paul Coble, who is slated to become chairman. “We’re not going to pay for it if you decide to use it as birth control.”
The ban would exclude cases of rape, incest, or when the mother’s life is endangered, Coble said.
The impending vote is the latest development in a back-and-forth between pro-life and pro-choice commissioners. In February, county administrators limited the health insurance plan to cover medically necessary abortions only. Republican commissioners ratified that decision, but the then-Democratic majority reversed it a month later.
Republican Phil Matthews’ victory over Democratic incumbent Lindy Brown in November returned the majority to GOP control. Matthews is expected to become vice chair after he’s sworn in Dec. 6.
Pro-choice groups say the development is evidence of misplaced goals. “Given the economy and other pressing issues, it is unfortunate that the newly elected majority’s first priority, in their first meeting, is to deny women comprehensive health care,” said Paige Johnson, a spokeswoman for the abortion-provider Planned Parenthood of Central North Carolina.
Wake taxpayers have footed the bill for about a dozen abortions since 1999, according to county staff.
Wake County’s action on the health insurance policy followed moves by a number of local governments to scuttle the coverage amid concerns that it violates a state Supreme Court ruling from 1981. That decision, Stam v. State of North Carolina (PDF download), found that the General Assembly never gave counties the authority to use local tax dollars to pay for the procedure for indigent women.
In August, the debate also spread to the University of North Carolina system. A policy change required students who aren’t covered by existing health insurance to buy coverage through the university system. The plan paid for elective abortions.
After getting pressure from pro-life groups, the university system revised the plan to allow students who oppose abortion to opt out of the coverage, even though they pay the same premiums.
David N. Bass is an associate editor of Carolina Journal.