Pro Life Believing that the Declaration of Independence affirms the right to life and believing that God is the Giver of life at the moment of conception, AdvanceUSA is committed to the preservation of life in all stages of human development or decline. We strongly support the repeal of Roe v. Wade. We support all laws that protect the unborn. We support adult stem cell research and its many proven advances while at the same time we oppose embryonic stem cell research and human cloning. We support laws that protect against active euthanasia.

Pro-Life News

PEPFAR Abortion and Abstinence Policies: If They're Not Broken, Don't Fix Them
UPDATE (4/4): The House of Representatives has approved a version of PEPFAR anti-AIDS funding that is much improved from the original version which would have mandated abortion funding, drastically cut back abstinence and faithfulness education, and weakened anti-prostitution provisions. Though significant improvements have been made to the bill, not all conservatives support the measure because of fiscal concerns over massive spending increases and concerns that there is insufficient accountability over how funds are spent. The bill will now go to the U.S. Senate.

UPDATE (2/20): The House Foreign Affairs Committee will vote on PEPFAR anti-AIDS funding reauthorization on Thursday, February 28. Call your representative today (especially if they serve on this committee) and urge him or her to vote against the PEPFAR legislation unless pro-abortion code words like "family panning" and "reproductive health" are removed and abstinence education and anti-prostitution language is maintained. LifeNews reports on the abortion funding aspect while the AP reports on President Bush's statements urging lawmakers to preserve crucial abstinence and faithfulness funding.

UPDATE (2/13): AdvanceUSA has learned from friends in the House of Representatives that the Foreign Affairs Committee hearings on PEPFAR have been postponed until the "week of February 25."

UPDATE (2/8): The AP reports on PEPFAR concerns here. The Foreign Affairs Committee will likely vote on PEPFAR on Thursday, February 14. Be sure to contact members of this committee and urge them to preserve the crucial pro-life and pro-morality provisions of PEPFAR.

UPDATE (2/7): The House Foreign Affairs Committee markup for PEPFAR originally scheduled today has been postponed to next week. As currently written, the legislation undermines effective abstinence programs and mandates taxpayer support of overseas abortions. FRC has provided a helpful list of committee members. If your representative is in this list, be sure to encourage him or her to oppose any provisions which undermine the Mexico City Policy, allow tax dollars to support overseas abortion providers or proponents, undermine anti-prostitution regulations, or weakens support for successful abstinence and faithfulness education programs. If these concerns are not met, your representative should be encouraged to oppose the underlying bill.

Liberals in Congress should stop endangering critical AIDS funding with attempts to advance their anti-life, liberal social agenda.

The President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), which was begun in 2003, has bipartisan support on Capitol Hill and will be up for renewal this year. Unfortunately, there is an aggressive push by liberals to disregard current stipulations that mandate funding for the "AB" ("abstinence" and "be faithful") portion of "ABC" education ("C" = condoms). The new efforts would allow funding for "reproductive health" (a.k.a "abortion") and ease the regulations that require groups receiving PEPFAR funds to pledge opposition to prostitution. The liberals claim to want only to fund "what works" despite the mounting evidence that teaching abstinence and faithfulness (as is done in Uganda) and taking a strong stance against prostitution are the most effective ways to combat the spread of the dreaded AIDS virus. Also, Americans should not have to subsidize overseas abortions with their tax dollars so Congress should be wary of allowing funds for "reproductive health" purposes as this is a broad term used by liberals to promote abortion.

Our friends in Congress tell us that PEPFAR will likely be considered by the House Foreign Affairs Committee on February 7. If your representative sits on this committee call him or her today and encourage them to be sure to 1. attend the February 7 hearings, 2. voice their support for abstinence funding and anti-prostitution efforts, 3. oppose taxpayer funded "reproductive health" (abortion), and 4. vote against any amendments which would weaken these crucial provisions.

Vitter Offers Pro-Life Amendment to Indian Health Bill
UPDATE (4/3): Congressman Joe Pitts (R-PA) has proposed a similar amendment to the House version of the Indian Health bill in the Energy and Commerce Committee. At this point it is unclear when the committee will consider Rep. Pitts' important pro-life amendment.

UPDATE (2/26): The Vitter amendment passed this morning by a vote of 52 - 42. For full vote results and to see how your senators voted on this important pro-life amendment click here. AdvanceUSA thanks all those who called their senators concerning this pro-life matter, and thanks Sen. Vitter (R-LA) for proposing this legislation.

UPDATE (2/20): AdvanceUSA has learned that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) has filed cloture on the Indian Health Services bill, and a vote on the essential pro-life Vitter amendment is expected on Monday or Tuesday (25th or 26th). Call both your senators and urge them to support the Vitter Amendment (# 3896) to the Indian Health Services bill!

UPDATE (1/23): We expect a vote on the Vitter amendment soon. Call both your senators today and urge them to vote "Yes" on Sen. Vitter's amendment to the Indian Health Services bill (S. 1200) and ensure that your tax dollars are not spent to provide abortions. We will post Senate vote results when they become available.

Do you want your tax dollars used to fund abortions within the United States? Currently the Hyde Amendment prohibits taxpayer-funding of abortion in most of the United States, but the sovereign territories of Indian nations within the U.S. are exempt from this provision. AdvanceUSA has learned that Senator David Vitter (R-LA) intends to propose an amendment to the Indian Health Care Improvement Act (S. 1200) which would codify a longstanding policy against funding abortions with taxpayer-funds from the federal Indian Health Services (HIS). The amendment would prohibit federal funding for abortions except to save the life of the mother or in cases of rape or incest of a minor. The Vitter amendment could be considered immediately when the Senate reconvenes on January 22, which is interestingly enough the date for the March for Life and the 35th anniversary of Roe vs. Wade.

Call both your senators today and urge them to support the Vitter amendment to S. 1200!

Title X Reform: Taxpayer Dollars and Abortion Providers
The way Federal Title X (title ten) funds are spent in this country is in drastic need of reform. Title X funds are supposed to support family planning services but are often given to abortion providers like Planned Parenthood. Under President Ronald Reagan and the first President Bush, federal regulations were clearly written to prevent recipients of Title X funds from referring for abortions or combining family planning services with abortion services (ex: working at the same location). AdvanceUSA encourages the current Bush administration to issue Title X regulations which do two things:

1. reestablish prohibitions against family planning services co-locating with abortion providers
2. rescind regulations for family planning services which require them to refer for abortions

AdvanceUSA also supports legislation aimed at preventing taxpayers' Title X funds from supporting groups like Planned Parenthood (especially since Planned Parenthood is under investigation for serious allegations of law-breaking and ethical malfeasance). American's tax dollars should not be used to support abortion, and we hope Congress and the President will act accordingly.

"New Congressional Bill Helps States Help Women Find Abortion Alternatives"
The Positive Alternatives Act (H.R. 4852) will codify current Department of Health policies that allow pregnant women to receive benefits that constitute "alternatives to abortion." Click here to read the text of the bill or read a news story about the bill at LifeNews. In a letter to her colleagues, Bachman said "Not only do these services help reduce the occurrence of abortion, they also help resolve social, familial and economic challenges many women face that lead to destructive lifestyles and more long-term dependency on government assistance." AdvanceUSA applauds Rep. Michelle Bachman (R-MN) for taking the lead on this practical and compassionate pro-life issue. Please contact your representative today and encourage them to cosponsor and vote for H.R. 4852, the Positive Alternatives Act.

Sens. Brownback and Landrieu Propose Anti-Hybrid Cloning Bill
UPDATE (4/3): Recent reports of scientists creating human-animal hybrids in Great Britain show the urgency of passing the Human-Animal Hybrid Prohibition Act in the United States, and shows the depths to which science can sink if all ethical concerns are abandoned.

Attempting to prevent the creation of hybrid human-animal embryos (or chimeras), Senators Sam Brownback (R-KS) and Mary Landrieu (D-LA) have proposed legislation to ban this blurring of the sanctity of human life. The legislation is S. 2358, the Human-Animal Hybrid Prohibition Act of 2007 (read full text here). Hopefully, this forward-thinking legislation can be passed before this outrageous tampering with the meaning of being human becomes a prominent issue in the United States. Call both your senators and urge them to cosponsor and vote "Yes" on S. 2358, the Human-Animal Hybrid Prohibition Act!

March For Life 2008: 35 Years of Roe
UPDATE (1/23): For first-hand reporting and photos of the events of January 22 check the "March for Life" category at AdvanceUSA blog.

January 22, 2008 marks the 35th anniversary of the Roe vs. Wade decision in which the Supreme Court usurped the will of the people, ignored the authority of representative government, and erroneously declared a constitutional right to kill unborn children in the womb. The verdict opened the door to abortion on demand and, as Cal Thomas points out, devastatingly damaged our culture and society.

For years, in our nation's capital and across the country, the March for Life has taken place on this somber anniversary, and this year's events were especially important. AdvanceUSA was on hand for many of the events and has first-hand reports on the blog.

AdvanceUSA and other pro-lifer groups are grateful for President George W. Bush's recent promise to veto any legislation that seeks to overturn the many federal policies that prevent federal funds from supporting abortion. In letters to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, the President indicated he would veto "any legislation that weakens current Federal policies and laws on abortion." Each year pro-life provisions or "riders" are attached to the annual appropriations bills which prevent public funds from supporting abortions, abortion providers, or abortion promoters. The pro-life riders are attached to funding legislation and typically come up in the appropriations process (especially for Title X funding) or Department of Defense reauthorizations. Thankfully, the 2007 Defense authorization bill (H.R. 1585) appears to pose no threat to these important pro-life riders.

Specific pro-life provisions to watch:

1. The Dickey-Wicker provision prohibits federal funding for research that harms or destroys human embryos.

2. The Kemp-Kasten Amendment prevents funding from going to those who support or participate in a program of coercive abortion or involuntary sterilization. If you don't want your tax dollars supporting an organization that supports China's brutal one-child policy encourage your representative to preserve the Kemp-Kasten amendment and other provisions that prohibit funding foreign abortion pushers.

3. The Hyde-Weldon provision offers conscience protections for health care entities that refuse to provide or encourage abortions. It requires federal funds to be withheld from any state that discriminates against a hospital, insurance provider, or individual doctors and nurses for refusing to participate in abortion.

4. The Mexico City Policy, first enacted by Ronald Reagan and later reinstituted by George W. Bush, prohibits USAID (foreign aid) money from going to any organizations that promote or perform abortions. This important provision is threatened by legislation recently passed by the House and Senate. Fortunately President Bush has promised to veto the bill.

5. Other provisions that are more specific include bans on funding for: abortions for federal prisoners, abortion in the District of Columbia, abortions through the Federal Employee Health Benefits program, abortions through Peace Corp, and abortion through the international HIV/AIDS bill.

Since these provisions and amendments must be approved with each new round of appropriation, pro-lifers must vigilantly watch their elected officials in Congress. Let your elected officials know that you oppose any effort to force taxpayer funding for abortion. Keep checking AdvanceUSA for more important pro-life news.

Title X
Title X is a federal program that supports family planning programs. Through the appropriations process liberals in Congress are likely to try to sneak tax-payer dollars to abortion providers like Planned Parenthood under the guise of supporting "pregnancy prevention." In fact Rep. Crowley (D-NY) is encouraging members of Congress to support massive increases in Title X spending which is also major goal of abortion providers like Planned Parenthood. Don't let the liberal smokescreen of "preventing pregnancies" fool you into thinking liberals have suddenly become pro-life.

Threat to Mexico City Policy
Under the Mexico City Policy (which was originally instituted by President Reagan, disregarded by President Clinton, and then reinstated by President George W. Bush) any family planning organization hoping to receive federal foreign aid funds must pledge not to support or practice abortions as part of their international efforts. Rep. Nita Lowey (D-NY), who is chairwoman of the Appropriations Committee, inserted legislation into the House version of the State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act that would stop this important provision. The Smith/Stupak amendment to this bill would have protected the Mexico City policy, but it was narrowly defeated by the House on June 21.

The Senate version also threatened the Mexico City Policy, and an amendment by Senator Boxer made the bill an even greater threat to the Mexico City Policy. To see how your senators voted on these important pro-life amendments check the Congress Vote Watch page or the vote charts below. Fortunately President Bush has promised to veto the bill if it overturns this important pro-life provision.

See how your elected officials voted on this issue at the Vote Watch Page.

Unborn Child Pain Awareness Act in the House and Senate
Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) reintroduced the Unborn Child Pain Awareness Act (H.R. 3442) in the House of Representatives on August 3, 2007. This bill would require mothers seeking an abortion to be notified of the excruciating pain their unborn child is likely to experience. Earlier last year (January 22, 2007) Senator Sam Brownback reintroduced this legislation in the Senate. Americans should actively support this legislation because it highlights the humanity of the unborn and offers some (albeit limited) protections to their inalienable rights. Continue to check AdvanceUSA for more information on this important step in the right direction.

In the last Congress the House of Representatives considered a similar bill. Unfortunately the bill failed to pass by 25 votes (check the Vote Watch page for full results) despite a statement of support from President Bush. In addition, National Right to Life made available a helpful fact sheet, an explanatory letter to Congress, and detailed rebuttals to pro-abortion arguments. To see how your representative voted on the House bill in the last Congress click here.

SCHIP: A Scheme to Implement Universal Health Care with a Troubling Loophole for Families and Pro-Lifers
UPDATE (3/14): Unfortunately the Allard amendment failed last night by a vote of 46-52. Instead, the Senate passed the Boxer amendment which categorizes pregnant mothers as "children" in order to provide these women with health coverage without committing the liberal sacrilege of insinuating that the unborn are in fact children. For full vote results and to see how your senators voted on this important pro-life legislation click here.

UPDATE (3/11): Sen. Wayne Allard has again proposed an amendment to the budget bill which would provide health coverage for unborn children on the SCHIP program. His amendment would codify this important policy into federal law, and will most likely be voted on when the Senate begins an intense session of voting this Thursday (March 13). AdvanceUSA thanks Sen. Allard for proposing this important pro-life legislation. Call both your senators today and urge them to vote "Yes" on Sen. Allard's amendment protecting unborn children under SCHIP!

UPDATE (12/5): The Heritage Foundation recently published a report that shows that the proposed expansion of SCHIP would also provide free contraceptives to students while hiding this information from parents.

UPDATE (10/26): Unfortunately the latest version of SCHIP does not codify important language that ensures unborn children receive medical care. It is important that this language be codified into law so that future administrations cannot deny health coverage to the unborn.

UPDATE (10/22): On October 18, the House of Representatives was unable to override President Bush's veto of the SCHIP bill. Hopefully, any new SCHIP proposal will codify the language that allows unborn children to receive health care under SCHIP.

UPDATE (9/28): President Bush has promised to veto the recently passed SCHIP bill. Pro-lifers are hoping that in the new version the current provision that allows unborn children to receive health care under SCHIP will be codified into law so that no future administration could decide to withhold care from the unborn.

The State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) was originally created to help provide health insurance for children in low-income families who did not fall below the poverty line (eligible for Medicaid) but whose incomes were less than $40,000 a year.

Not surprisingly, the program has expanded to include more than just children and more than just the very poor. There is great fear that this year's reauthorization of SCHIP could drastically expand the number of people eligible to receive funds which would increase government dependency among America's families. Many feel this proposed SCHIP expansion is a dangerous step toward government-controlled universal health care (similar to 1990's Hillarycare). If implemented, this expansion would make as many as 71% of American children eligible for this entitlement which would no doubt draw many away from successful private-sector insurers. In fact some families considered wealthy enough to qualify for the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) would also be eligible for "low-income" SCHIP health care for their children - that means a family earning $80,000 is considered too "poor" for private health care but too "rich" for regular tax rates.

Additionally, there are two pro-family concerns with SCHIP. First, while federal SCHIP funds are prohibited from paying for abortions; state and local governments are not prohibited from using SCHIP programs to provide contraceptives or sterilizations in some cases. Second, language should be added that would allow unborn children to receive medical care under SCHIP. A guideline instituted by the Bush administration in 2002 allows states to cover the unborn under SCHIP, but there have been efforts to allow SCHIP funds only for "pregnant mothers" and not for the "unborn." Liberals prefer this language because it does not undermine their belief that the unborn have no right to life and because it could, in some cases, allow pregnant mothers to receive money for abortions.

Congress could have fixed these troubling loopholes when it reauthorized SCHIP funding. Unfortunately the pro-life amendment by Sen. Wayne Allard (R-CO) failed Thursday night, August 2 by a vote of 49 - 50. His amendment would have codified language protecting unborn children under SCHIP and eliminated a loophole that could lead to tax-payer funded abortions. To see how your senators voted on the Allard amendment consult the vote box below or visit the Congress Vote Watch page. Fortunately President Bush has promised to veto SCHIP legislation that does not protect the unborn or that violates his spending guidelines (for his statement on the Senate version click here).

The Heritage Foundation has produced many helpful reports on SCHIP, three particularly helpful ones can be read by clicking here, here, or here.

President Vetoes Embryonic Stem Cell Funding Bill Again: Senate Could Vote On Veto Override Soon
President George W. Bush vetoed the latest embryonic stem cell funding bill on Wednesday, June 20 as he had promised in a recent Statement of Administration Policy. The U.S. House of Representatives passed the bill (S. 5) on June 7 by a vote of 247 to 176, a 35-vote margin which is an improvement over the 39-vote margin in January on a very similar bill. Our friends in Congress tell us that we are making progress on this issue so pro-lifers should be encouraged but remain vigilant. The Senate must now decide whether to override or sustain the President's veto. In the Senate a veto override requires a 2/3 majority of those present to vote.

Pro-lifers are hopeful that the Senate will sustain the veto, but even if the veto is upheld there are concerns that members of Congress will try to add these unethical stem cell funding provisions to other important legislation as Sen. Harkin has suggested.

Embryonic stem cell research is both immoral and unnecessary. Unfortunately many in Congress want to spend your tax dollars on it anyway. Proponents of the measure frequently exaggerate claims about the necessity and usefulness of embryonic stem cells, but in addition to its highly questionable usefulness the fundamental problem is that such research destroys human lives. For important information on stem cell research and other bioethics issues visit the stem cell page and adult stem cell page. To see how your senators and representative voted on this bill check the Vote Watch page.

Now that President Bush has vetoed the legislation it will soon return to the Senate and will only come back to the House if the Senate manages to override the veto. Pray that this bill never becomes law and that liberals in Congress will not try to sneak this type of unethical stem cell language into other legislation.

Take Positive Pro-Life Action: Pregnancy Centers Need Your Help!
Most pro-lifers seek laws that will protect the rights of the unborn by restricting or prohibiting abortion, and rightly so. While this should remain the overarching goal of the pro-life movement, pro-lifers should also champion the positive strategy of reducing the number of abortions through love and assistance. Pregnancy Centers across America are helping women contemplating abortion make the choice for life. By offering counsel, practical assistance, and love these pro-life organizations are making a difference one life at a time.

Care Net is an organization that advocates for and gives assistance to pregnancy centers across the nation. Care Net can help frightened mothers find a pregnancy center near them and offers free 24-hour counseling with a call to their Option Line resource. If you're looking for a practical way to further the pro-life movement, look up your nearest pregnancy center and see how you can help save innocent lives.

See how your elected officials voted on this issue at the Vote Watch Page.

What You Need To Know About Stem Cells and Human Cloning

What are stem cells? Are there different types of stem cells? What are the ethical implications of stem cell research? Who wants to clone human beings and why? What is SCNT? Is there stem cell research in my state? Find the answers to these important questions and more on the stem cell page.

See how your elected officials voted on this issue at the Vote Watch Page.

RU-486 (Abortion Pill) News and Information As Abortion Rate Drops, Use of [Dangerous] RU-486 [Abortion Drug] Is on Rise Group Uncovers Troubling Information About the Abortion Drug RU-486 New Study Wrongly Claims Dangerous Abortion Drug RU 486 is Safe Senate Committee Defeats Effort to Suspend Dangerous Abortion Drug Tennessee Senate Holds Hearing on Bill Regarding Abortion Drug's Risks Senator DeMint Will Place Hold on FDA Nominee Unless Abortion Drug Reconsidered Number of Women Taking Suspect Abortion Pill Doubles in Britain Man Blames Daughter's Death on Abortion Pill New Documents Show Clinton White House Rushed Abortion Pill to U.S. Market OB-GYN: Abortion Pill has Potential to Destroy Women's Lives

Pending Abortion Cases Around the U.S.

Plan B: A Threat to Life and a Danger to Health
The FDA, with the support of the Bush Administration, has approved Plan B (the Morning-After Pill) for women over 18 years old without a prescription. Plan B is an extremely high dose of the more common birth-control medication. However, it can act as an abortion agent because in some cases it can prevent a fertilized embryo from implanting in the mother's womb. For this reason most pro-life groups oppose this medication, especially with over-the-counter access. Particularly alarming is the fact that a drug which at normal strength requires a doctor's prescription can now be sold over the counter at 40 times the normal strength. Many medical experts fear that this drug constitutes a serious health risk to women. Furthermore, there is great doubt that the FDA will be able to enforce its 18 year-old age limit which could potentially allow rapists and child molesters to cover-up their crimes. Click here to view the Family Policy Network's excellent resource on the morning-after abortion pill. Many liberals, sensing the growing pro-life sentiment of the nation, have attempted to cloud the abortion issue by using terms like "prevention" and "unwanted pregnancy." Don't let the liberals fool you! Opposition to Plan B stems from its clear threat to unborn human life and its danger to the health of women.

Plan B News:

Click on the map to read an article discussing the state-by-state implications of overturning Roe v. Wade.

For more Pro Life information click here.