# Plain Language Summary: No Abortion Coverage for Medicaid Act

This bill prevents the federal government from approving special Medicaid programs that would use federal money to pay for abortions. Medicaid is the health insurance program for low-income Americans, and the government sometimes tests out new pilot programs to see if different ways of delivering healthcare work better. This bill says that if a state wants to run one of these experimental programs, it cannot use federal Medicaid dollars to cover abortion services or to help people travel to get abortions.

The restrictions have some important exceptions. The bill still allows federal Medicaid money to cover abortions in cases of rape or incest, when the pregnancy threatens a woman's life, or when treating miscarriages and ectopic pregnancies (pregnancies that develop outside the uterus). So the ban specifically targets elective abortions in other circumstances.

For most people on Medicaid, this likely won't change much if they live in a state that already doesn't cover abortion through regular Medicaid—most states already have their own restrictions on this. However, if a state was planning to test out a new program that included abortion coverage as part of a broader healthcare experiment, that program would no longer be able to move forward using federal funds. States could theoretically still fund such programs with their own money, but they couldn't use the federal portion of Medicaid dollars to do so.

No Abortion Coverage for Medicaid Act

Brecheen, Josh

No Abortion Coverage for Medicaid ActThis bill prohibits the Centers for Medicare &amp; Medicaid Services from approving experimental, pilot, or demonstration projects under Medicaid (also known as Section 1115 Demonstrations) if the project provides federal financial assistance for abortions or for health benefits that include abortions, including expenses for related travel or lodging.The bill's restrictions do not apply to abortions&nbsp;in the cases of rape or incest; treatments to address life-threatening physical disorders, injuries, or illnesses; or treatments for miscarriages or ectopic pregnancies.