(LifeSiteNews) — A group of California abortion providers and supporters, including Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office, is proposing the state government pay women living in other parts of the U.S. for travel and lodging expenses if they seek abortions in California once Roe v. Wade is overturned.
The California Future of Abortion Council (CA FAC), which includes over 40 abortion providers and advocacy groups, released a list of 45 recommendations for the state legislature to consider if abortions are banned in other states.
“The report recommends funding — including public spending — to support patients seeking abortion for travel expenses such as gas, lodging, transportation and child care,” reported ABC News.
It also proposes that taxpayers be forced to reimburse the cost of abortions for women who cannot afford them, including low-income women from out of state. California’s Medicaid program already pays for the abortions of many of the state’s low-income women.
Newsom, whose office supports the CA FAC, told the Associated Press last week that he will include some of the group’s recommendations in his budget proposal next year. He has declared that California will be a “sanctuary,” although, if the measures are enacted, the state will be just the opposite of a sanctuary for unborn children.
In September, Newsom had announced his administration’s participation in the CA FAC “to advance the state’s leadership on reproductive freedom and signed legislation furthering the state’s commitment to ensuring access to essential reproductive and sexual health care services.”
Over two dozen states are expected to ban abortions if Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court’s landmark 1973 decision imposing abortion on all 50 states, is overturned. Fabiola Carrion, interim director for reproductive and sexual health at the national Health Law Program, predicted that such a great influx of abortion-seekers would “definitely destabilize the abortion provider network” in California.
California, which does not require parental permission for teenage abortions, has already been providing for the abortions of many from out of state. Planned Parenthood, which performs about half of California’s abortions, said it dealt with about 7,000 clients from other states in 2020.
Kathleen Buckley Domingo, executive director for the California Catholic Conference (CCC), noted that “not one of the group’s recommendations considers alternatives to abortion and there is no discussion of the factors that cause women to seek abortions,” according to Angelus News.
“When families are struggling to put food on the table and pay rent, it is absurd for the state to focus on expanding abortion when the real needs of families for basic necessities remain unmet,” said Domingo in a December 9 statement. “California doesn’t need more abortion. It needs to support women and help them be the mothers they want to be.”
Jonathan Keller, president and CEO of the California Family Council, said many of California’s roughly 160 pregnancy resource centers “are already planning on increasing their staffing if California gets an increase of patients,” according to ABC News.
“Even if we are not facing any immediate legislative opportunities or legislative victories, it’s a reminder that the work of changing hearts and minds and also providing real support and resources to women facing unplanned pregnancies — that work will always continue,” Keller said.