Tuesday, June 14, 2005

Appropriations--Back and Forth We Go

Another item from the Justice Appropriations bill (from http://thomas.loc.gov):
" SEC. 103. None of the funds appropriated under this title shall be used to require any person to perform, or facilitate in any way the performance of, any abortion.

SEC. 104. Nothing in the preceding section shall remove the obligation of the Director of the Bureau of Prisons to provide escort services necessary for a female inmate to receive such service outside the Federal facility: Provided, That nothing in this section in any way diminishes the effect of section 103 intended to address the philosophical beliefs of individual employees of the Bureau of Prisons."
I'm curious whether Sec. 103 was added to the appropriations bill one year, then later a case came up that caused Sec. 104 to be added in the next go-round. Sec. 103 says "require", so conceivably a prison doctor could opt to perform an abortion without violating it. However, if the prison doctor does not perform abortions, then you'd have to transport a pregnant inmate whose life was being threatened by the pregnancy.

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