Who put the abstinence only funding back in the health care bill?

[madfloridian]

From RH Reality Check a blogger asks the question.

It was removed from the appropriations bill. Yet it is still appearing in the health care bill.

Who Put Failed Ab-Only Programs Back in Health Care Reform? And Why?

Lost in the shuffle of analysis of the new health care reform legislation is the fact that Democrats included over $250 million for failed Title V abstinence-only-until-marriage programs. The funds had been inserted in the health care reform legislation by Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) during Senate Finance Committee consideration of the bill last summer and, somehow, quietly survived the process of revisions that went on last fall.

..."Never mind that 22 states had rejected Title V funding in the past because they did not want to spend precious matching funds on programs that don’t work. Never mind that Speaker Pelosi condemned these programs at the Netroots conference in 2008. Bottom line is they are back, and Democrats seem none to eager to own up to who threw young people under the bus!

Here are some of the things we are hearing. Even though a number of prominent Democrats including Cong. Henry Waxman (D-CA) had contacted leadership and demanded that the ab-only programs be pulled from the bill, we’ve been told that leadership was focused on the "bigger issues" and never reached consideration of the ab-only piece.

Boy, does that ever smack of the “dog ate my homework” excuse. There was no rationale for keeping this amendment in the bill. Hatch is a Republican who opposes health care reform so there was no political need to placate the author of the measure. Taking Title V out of the bill would have saved a quarter billion dollars over five years and Democrats were desperate for savings so they could show that the bill would reduce the federal deficit.

..."The bottom line is that staff could have removed the funding in no time unless someone insisted on keeping it in the bill. So, a significant question comes to mind. Was the Title V funding part of the Stupak deal? Was it one more reproductive and sexual health “chit” traded away for conservative Democratic votes? If so, we have a right to know.

Yes, it does appear that Orin Hatch is claiming credit for it. Here is a column from the Salt Lake Tribune.

More than "no"..Look closely at abstinence study

Updated: 03/31/2010 05:00:15 PM MDT

Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch achieved a major coup for conservative advocates of abstinence-only sex education in the Democratic health reform legislation passed March 21. It remains to be seen whether it was a coup for teens in Utah.

Hatch managed to win approval for an amendment to the bill that provides $50 million annually for five years to states that offer abstinence programs in public schools. It was almost the only Republican amendment to survive the tumultuous debate that raged into the night before the vote.

Here is more about Hatch's inclusion of this funding...and more about the Democrats involved.

From last year:

New Senate bill contains $50 million for "abstinence only" education?

A number of studies have cast some serious doubt about the effectiveness of abstinence-only sex education and as a result, congressional Democrats -- who have bristled at the program for years -- cut off all federal funding.

But then Hatch stepped in. During a committee health reform debate, he cited his own supportive studies and proposed an amendment restoring $50 million for the controversial program for the next five years. It passed with the help of two Democrats -- Sens. Blanche Lincoln, from Arkansas, and Kent Conrad, from North Dakota -- much to the chagrin of Senate liberals.

"I sure do not want the abstinence education to be short-changed," Hatch said during the hearing.

The committee passed a second amendment supported by the Democratic chairman that created a separate $50 million program for comprehensive sex-ed, which combines information about abstinence, sexually transmitted diseases and contraceptives.

As the Senate nears a final vote, both programs remain in the legislation.

[Tailormyst]

1. Not the least bit surprising.

[Triana]

2. "abstinence-only sex education"

isn't sex education.

It's like telling someone not to breathe. Pretty stupid. Not educational. Not safe. Not realistic. Not smart. And worst of all, not effective. Of course Republicans (and Democrats who are Republicans under their 'D' suit) would support such bunk.

UNbelievable that the US would waste money on such crap.

[Greyhound]

3. K&R.

[ChicagoSuz219]

4. We all know how well that works...

Is he willing to pay child support for all the unplanned-for children that will be born?

[catrose]

5. Who were the people who were against govt waste?

[liberation]

6. So the GOP still gets to amend and frame bills, for which they vote Nay in block?

In other words: the Dems get to pass a milquetoast useless bill and use it as an "achievement" to rile their base come election day. The GOP gets to use the bill and their refusal as proof of their palladin-like steadfast defense of everything which is holy and conservative, again so they can use it to rile their base for the election. While the actual status quo of all those large campaign donors is preserved.

Occam's Razor dictates that this is no n-dimensional chess game, but a really pedestrian kabuki play.

[Shallah Kali]

7. Abtinence Only means more kids doing everything but intercourse sex, more stds, more kids w/kids

outside of marriage - all things the right wing and religious right claim to deplore and yet again and again and again they take actions that create more of those things than less!

Are they really that dumb or are they acutally trying to create more sinners according to their proclaimed belief systems?