OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) — A bill to link abortion coverage to maternity care has died in the Washington state Senate.
The bill was caught up in a Friday afternoon Republican budget coup, in which the GOP peeled off the necessary three Democratic votes to introduce an austere budget plan.
The abortion measure, HB 2330, had passed the House and Democrats expected it to have the votes necessary in the Senate, but two attempts to bring it to the floor were narrowly voted down in the aftermath of the budget coup.
The bill is likely dead for this session, but could be taken up again in a special session — and could be used as a bargaining chip in budget negotiations.
Supporters say the bill would ensure continued access to abortion coverage once federal health care reforms are enacted in 2014.
