Nelson Amendment

The Nelson Amendment is the name given to an amendment to restrict federal funding of elective abortions in the Senate version of America's Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009.

No abortions funded with government money

Democratic Senator Ben Nelson had said he would not support a bill that "doesn't make it clear that it does not fund abortion with government money".^[1]

Support for a filibuster

He introduced a Senate version of the Stupak–Pitts Amendment and threatened to support a filibuster of the Senate bill if the language was not included.^[2][3]

Segregation of elective abortion funding

He later agreed to accept a version that would allow people to use federal subsidies to buy plans that include abortion coverage while requiring them to pay for elective abortion coverage separately without subsidies. States could exclude plans providing abortion coverage from their respective exchanges.^[2] After criticism from national pro-life organizations, Nelson shifted his position and indicated that he would lobby for tighter restrictions on elective abortion funding similar to the Stupak-Pitts Amendment.^[4]

Relationship with Scott Brown's election

Until Scott Brown's election to the Senate in January 2010, the Nelson Amendment was viewed by the pro-choice leadership of the Democratic party as one of the big hurdles in passing legislation, along with other significant issues such as the public option.^[5] Brown removed the pressure away from Senator Nelson in carrying the decisive political opposition to the bill because the Republicans were united in their own opposition to it.^[6]

References

1. ^ Abortion Haggling Looms Over Health Care Debate in Senate - FOXNews.com
2. ^ ^{a b} MacGillis, Alec, Both sides question health bill's abortion compromise,The Washingron Post, December 22, 2009
3. ^ Condon, Stephanie, "Ben Nelson to Offer Stupak Amendment for Senate Health Bill", CBS News, December 1, 2009
4. ^ http://prescriptions.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/01/27/nelson-planned-to-insist-on-tighter-abortion-restrictions/
5. ^ Senate turns to health bill's major obstacles
6. ^ Ben Nelson’s position shifts as Scott Brown enters Senate