Children make up majority of sex assault victim fund scrutinized by Iowa AG

DES MOINES -- Victim advocates are urging Republican Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird to continue allowing the state’s victim compensation funds to cover contraception and abortion care for rape victims, noting a majority of those served by the fund are juvenile victims of sexual abuse.

“Victims of rape and child abuse have an acute need for timely access to health services, including contraception to prevent unintended pregnancy and abortion care,” said Beth Barnhill, executive director of the Iowa Coalition Against Sexual Assault, in a joint statement with the Iowa Coalition Against Domestic Violence. “Cost should never be a barrier for rape victims seeking medical care.”

The Iowa Attorney General's Office has paused its practice of paying for emergency contraception — and in rare cases, abortions — for victims of sexual assault, a move that’s generated national headlines and draw criticism from victim advocates.

Federal regulations and state law require Iowa to pay expenses for sexual assault victims who seek medical help, such as the costs of forensic exams and treatment for sexually transmitted infections. Iowa Code states victims of sexual assault in Iowa are “never responsible for a sexual abuse forensic examination or for medications required due to the assault,” according to Iowa’s Crime Victim Assistance annual report.

Though not explicitly required, it has been the state’s longtime policy to cover the cost of emergency contraception under the victim compensation fund, and in rare cases, the fund has also paid for abortions for rape victims, said Sandi Tibbetts Murphy, director of the victim assistance division under previous attorney general, Democrat Tom Miller.

A spokeswoman for Bird, who defeated Miller in the 2022 November election, said those payments are now on hold as part of a review of victim services.

“As a part of her top-down, bottom-up audit of victim assistance, Attorney General Bird is carefully evaluating whether this is an appropriate use of public funds,” Bird press secretary Alyssa Brouillet said in a statement. “Until that review is complete, payment of these pending claims will be delayed.”

Iowa's $3.3 million victim compensation fund — which comes from fines, fees and penalties paid by convicted criminals — paid nearly $1.7 million in expenses for sexual assault victims who sought medical help in fiscal 2021, the most recent year for which numbers were readily available. That includes costs of forensic exams and treatment for sexually transmitted infections, as well as Plan B, the so-called “morning after” pill, and other treatments to prevent pregnancy.

More than 2,200 examination claims were submitted, and a total of 10,434 sexual assault victims served. Juveniles accounted for the majority of sexual abuse victim costs paid for by the victim compensation fund, according to a 2021 annual report.

No taxpayer dollars go into the state victim compensation fund, which is separate from taxpayer funds appropriated by legislators each year in the state budget process.

Ensuring victims are not responsible for the cost of a forensic exam or for medications is key to encouraging victims to undergo medical exam as soon as possible after a violent assault, which can help prevent offenders from victimizing others and enhance access to medical care for crime victims, Barnhill said.

“This is a good public policy and consistent with medical ethics and standards of care,” according the joint statement from the Iowa Coalition Against Sexual Assault and Iowa Coalition Against Domestic Violence.

Bird's office did not respond to messages asking how often the victim fund has paid for emergency contraception and abortion care, or how much was spent. The Attorney General’s Office also did not provide a timeline for making a decision on whether the state will continue to pay for emergency contraception and abortion under the program.

Mark Stringer, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa, called Bird’s decision “beyond cruel” to take away “much-needed sexual assault medical care from Iowans.” Like Barnhill and Tibbetts Murphy, Stringer said continuing payments for contraception would prevent unintended pregnancy and abortion care.

"Being sexually assaulted is traumatic for survivors and the State of Iowa simply must do the right thing by them,“ Stringer said in a statement. ”This includes helping victims put their lives back together and assist them on the road to recovery. Instead, this decision penalizes and re-victimizes them.“

Bird campaigned as being “100 percent pro-life” and since taking office has reversed abortion policies under her predecessor. She signed on to represent Gov. Kim Reynolds in her lawsuit to reinstate a blocked law that would ban abortion except in the earliest weeks of pregnancy, before many women know they are pregnant. Her office also supported a lawsuit in Texas that sought to revoke Food and Drug Administration approval for the abortion-inducing medication mifepristone.

A majority of Iowans, however, continue to support legal abortion. A new Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll last month found 61 percent of Iowa adults say abortion should be legal in most or all cases, while 35 percent say the procedure should be illegal in most or all cases.

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