Michigan Is About To Enact New Abortion Restrictions Without The Governor’s Approval

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Michigan Is About To Enact New Abortion Restrictions Without The Governor’s Approval

Michigan may soon join the 23 other states that ban abortion coverage in the plans sold on Obamacare’s new insurance marketplaces, obstructing women’s abortion access by requiring them to purchase an entirely separate insurance rider for that procedure. But if that policy becomes law in the state, it won’t be because Gov. Rick Snyder (R) signed it. In fact, Syder vetoed that type of legislation last year, saying it went too far to interfere in the private insurance market.

So how will the new abortion restriction get codified into law? The anti-choice community is circumventing the governor altogether to force the issue through with the support of conservative lawmakers.

After last year’s attempt to get the bill passed through the state’s normal legislative process fell short, Michigan’s anti-choice activists began considering other strategies. They have been circulating a petition to provoke a “citizen-initiated” vote on the issue, and they submitted the necessary signatures on Friday to do so. If state lawmakers approve the measure, it will immediately become law without Snyder’s signature. And if lawmakers reject it, it’s not dead yet — it will be placed on the 2014 ballot and put up for voters’ consideration.

It’s a familiar strategy for the social conservatives who are relentlessly pushing their anti-choice agenda. “We’ve been successful (with petition drives) in the past,” Pam Sherstad, the director of public information for Right to Life of Michigan, explained over the summer. “We’re a statewide organization that works in communities across Michigan, and we’ve had an enthusiastic response to this effort.”

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Full article here: http://thinkprogress.org/health/2013/10/08/2751791/michigan-abortion-restriction-petition/