Thread: Bishops may pull health care support over immigrants

Bishops may pull health care support over abortion, immigrants

Posted 7m ago
By Kevin Eckstrom, Religion News Service

WASHINGTON — The nation's Catholic bishops have threatened to pull their support for health care reform unless their concerns about abortion and access for immigrants are addressed by lawmakers.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, which supports universal access to health care as a "basic human right," had been supportive of efforts to reform the health care system, but is concerned about taxpayer-funded abortions.


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Current law prohibits federal funding of abortions, and the White House has insisted abortion will not be covered in a final bill, but many conservatives worry that attempts to make that promise explicit in legislation have failed.

Catholic officials are also concerned about failed attempts to insert language that would protect the consciences of medical providers who object to procedures like abortion, birth control, or fertility treatments.

"It is essential that the legislation clearly apply ... longstanding and widely supported federal restrictions on abortion funding and mandates, and protections for rights of conscience," the bishops said in an Oct. 8 letter to Congress. "No current bill meets this test."

The bishops maintained that health care reform must provide for low-income Americans who lack access to health insurance, as well as "legal" immigrants. Some bishops and liberal groups have argued that reform must also encompass undocumented immigrants.

"If final legislation does not meet our principles," the bishops warned, "we will have no choice but to oppose the bill."

Progressive Catholic groups, meanwhile, are cheering the passage of the centerpiece health care bill on Oct. 13 by the Senate Finance Committee. "People of faith in general, and Catholics in particular, believe that universal health care ranks among our nation's most urgent moral priorities," said Chris Korzen, executive director of the group Catholics United.

Reform Jewish leaders called the Senate bill "a milestone in the journey toward giving American citizens the health care coverage they deserve," but urged congressional negotiators to include a government-sponsored "public option" in the final bill.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/religion/2 ... alth_N.htm

Yahoo! a two fer

It looks like the Catholic agenda for conquest of America is loud and clear.

Why don't Catholics help their people in their OWN COUNTRY?

You cannot tell me we haven't emabarked upon a new chapter in Theocratic rule.

Originally Posted by Captainron

Why don't Catholics help their people in their OWN COUNTRY?

You cannot tell me we haven't emabarked upon a new chapter in Theocratic rule.

Why does the Vatican have a walled city and guards to keep people out?

You can now add the Catholic Church as another front to fight. The church which first tried to shroud this invasion as righteous while encouraging “compassion for the poorâ€

Tax all churches and use the money to help fund health care for the poor.

They seem to be sworn and determined to prove that separation of church and state was just another wild rumor in this country. And, not to mention, they are probably losing parishoners which have been leaving, starting with the pederast priests, and Americans thinking better of some of their dictates. A diminishment in tithes makes the Vatican very unhappy, so embrace the illegals more and more--not for humanitarian reasons, as they like to cloak it, but any penny of money they can get.