Family Planning Back In The Budget

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Feb 26 2009, 3:40 pm by Marc Ambinder

It created a little stir when it was pulled from stimulus, but now it's in President Obama's FY 2010 budget plan. New funding for the Medicaid Family Planning State Option will allow states to bypass a waiver process when providing services to women who don't ordinarily qualify for government aid. Advocates say it would reduce later-term abortions because lower-income women would have quicker access to doctors. A month ago, Obama urged Rep. Henry Waxman to drop the money from his portion of the stimulus bill but, the White House promised women's health groups that it would be funded through the ordinary budget process.