D.C. Abortion Funding Ban Begins To Rear Its Ugly Head

The compromise reached last week by President Barack Obama and Speaker of the House John Boehner to reinstate a ban on D.C.'s ability to fund abortions for low-income women has, so far, been enveloped inside a bubble of political rhetoric. But the very real effects of the ban have started to take hold: 28 women who were scheduled for abortion procedures in the District today were informed by a local clinic last night that, as of midnight, they would be unable to rely on D.C. Medicaid to pay for those procedures.

The DC Abortion Fund, an all-volunteer operated organization which has provided guidance to D.C. area women regarding abortions since 1995, sent out an emergency call late last night to raise funds for the 28 women. DC Abortion Fund's Tiffany Reed says that the emergency campaign has been relatively successful to date.

"We've raised over $3,965 so far in the last 12 hours," Reed told DCist via email. "We're still working to fundraise for the women who are scheduled today and then we have women scheduled Friday and Saturday who are just now being notified they can't use their Medicaid."

The fundraising effort -- which has included a $250 donation made by Ward 1 Councilmember Jim Graham -- will continue through the weekend.

"We're doing a big push to get these women seen through the weekend, since they won't have adequate time to fundraise hundreds of dollars on their own in time," Reed added.

In-clinic abortion procedures performed in the first trimester of pregancy usually cost hundreds of dollars, a prohibitive bill for many low-income women inside the District.

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http://dcist.com/2011/04/abortion_funding_cut.php

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