Archbishop Chaput: Catholics must ‘vigorously oppose and help defeat’ health legislation unless wording changed

November 03, 2009

Writing in his November 2 column, Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver is warning that all health care reform proposals, as currently worded, would fund abortions and thus merit vocal opposition.

“Eight weeks ago President Obama promised a joint session of Congress that ‘his’ health-care plan would not include or provide public monies for abortion,” Archbishop Chaput wrote. “Eight weeks later, there is no ‘president’s’ plan. Instead, as of Nov. 1, Congress has produced five different proposals, including a merged House version totaling nearly 2,000 pages of complex and sweeping legislation. Few citizens have actually read the text. Even fewer really understand its implications. But all of the proposals have one thing in common: Not one of them lives up to the president’s promise.”

The archbishop continued:

To put it bluntly: all of the health-care reform solutions currently facing Congress violate human dignity in potentially grievous ways. Unless these proposals are immediately changed to reflect the concerns of Congressman Stupak, other like-minded members of Congress, and leaders of the national Catholic community, Catholics need to vigorously oppose and help defeat this dangerous legislation …

The health-care reform debate has been dogged by a pattern of misleading, complex and at times flatly dishonest claims in Congress about the content of the 2,000-page legislation now taking final shape and nearing a vote. Don't be fooled. Contact your senators and representative. Demand that current health-care proposals be changed to respect Catholic and pro-life concerns. And equally important for all of us: We need to do it now.

 

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Further information:

• Archbishop Chaput: A promise was made; now it needs to be kept (Archdiocese of Denver)