Abortion opponents should build on what’s working

As part of his Condition of the State address Tuesday, Gov. Terry Branstad called on state legislators to strip funding from health care providers that perform abortions. Senate Republicans quickly answered his call by filing a bill that would create a state-run program to channel funding to women's health care providers that do not offer the procedure.

But there are several good reasons to oppose this proposal, even if one is staunchly pro-life. Instead, lawmakers seeking an environment where every pregnancy is welcomed and wanted should embrace what's already working.

Already, the number of abortions performed in our state have been significantly declining even as access to abortion services have expanded, most recently through use of telemedicine.

In 2015, less than 4,000 abortions took place in Iowa. That's a more than 40 percent drop from 2007 when nearly 7,000 abortions were performed.

In that same time, birthrates have remained steady, which means efforts to reduce unintended pregnancies are having the desired effect. Lawmakers should focus their energies on supporting these initiatives.

Already, there is no state funding of abortions in Iowa. Any state money received by these organizations must go to other services - including the critical family planning services that have been so successful at reducing unintended pregnancies in our state. Any effort to punish certain providers assuredly will limit Iowans' access to contraceptives, prenatal care and other services. One has only to look at the handful of states that already have gone down this road. They found that the other family-planning and health services that had been provided by those organizations - often to low-income residents - were not easily replaced.

On a purely practical level, creating a new layer of bureaucracy simply to punish certain providers will require additional public resources at a time when those resources are scarce. And given the likelihood of upcoming federal health care policy changes, such a move is as premature as it is unwise.

We understand that abortion is a moral and emotional issue for many Iowans. But attempting to eliminate abortion or punish providers by limiting Iowa women's access to health care is sure to backfire.

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