Stricter Medicaid abortion process up for debate in Montana

By AMY BETH HANSON
Associated Press

HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Officials in Republican-controlled Montana on Thursday heard comments against a health department proposal to require prior authorization to pay for abortions for Medicaid patients. Critics say the proposed rule change would reduce access and delay or even prevent abortion care for low-income women. The Department of Public Health and Human Services heard from 27 opponents and one supporter to the new rule. The proposal would also bar physician assistants or advanced practice nurses from providing Medicaid-funded abortion care. The agency says a review of abortions over the past decade leads it to believe it was paying for elective abortions, in part because providers weren’t adequately explaining the reason for an abortion.