Measure 106 test of Oregon’s abortion access

PORTLAND — Teenage girls in Oregon don’t need their parents’ consent to end an unwanted pregnancy, women in the country illegally have coverage for the procedure and private insurers will soon be required to cover the full cost of an abortion under a new law.

Oregon has the least restrictive laws on abortion access in the U.S., making it a political standard-bearer for the abortion rights movement. But a dozen years after voters last rejected a measure to reduce women’s ability to get an abortion, a question on the Nov. 6 ballot is asking a new generation to amend the Oregon Constitution to ban the use of state funding for abortion.

If Measure 106 passes, low-income women insured by Oregon’s Medicaid program would pay out of pocket for the procedure. Its language also would likely mean public employees — such as teachers, government officials, firefighters and police — would no longer receive abortion coverage through insurance.

The emergence of the ballot measure on the heels of the rightward shift of the U.S. Supreme Court has alarmed abortion rights advocates.

Opponents have labeled the measure a backdoor ban on abortion and say it targets the state’s poorest residents, who would have to pay $400 to $600 for the procedure without coverage from the Oregon Health Plan.

“In many ways, Oregon is the North Star when it comes to reproductive rights and abortion access, and if we, in this election, were to lose, it would be incredibly emboldening to the anti-abortion movement,” said Grayson Dempsey, executive director of NARAL Pro-Choice Oregon.

Those supporting the measure say it’s not an attack on abortion but an attempt to give Oregon residents a say in how their tax dollars are spent after years with no referendums on the issue.

Voters rejected similar funding bans in 1978 and 1986. A measure requiring parental notification before a minor’s abortion failed in 2006.

The federal government bans Medicaid funding of abortions, and a majority of states follow that lead. But Oregon is one of 17 states that uses its own tax dollars to fund abortions for women who are eligible for Medicaid.