DAVE GIBSON MAKES A GOOD POINT ABOUT STUPAK

Writing in AOL's Politics Daily, he thinks that the Stupak-Pitts amendment about abortion reflects the change in American opinion and is evidence that the Democrats are really serious about finding some common ground on this divisive issue.

He then makes this claim:

On health care, in particular, Obama had promised, with increasing conviction and confidence, that any reform package would include "robust" conscience protections for health care workers who did not want to engage in what they considered to be morally objectionable procedures as well as a bar on any federal funding of abortion. Yet as the process ground on, the rhetoric was not matched by black-and-white guarantees in the bills, and pro-life supporters grew nervous.

Section 259 of H.R. 3962 EH (and IH) seems to provide robust protections:

SEC. 259. NONDISCRIMINATION ON ABORTION AND RESPECT FOR RIGHTS OF CONSCIENCE.

(a) Nondiscrimination- A Federal agency or program, and any State or local government that receives Federal financial assistance under this Act (or an amendment made by this Act), may not--

(1) subject any individual or institutional health care entity to discrimination; or

(2) require any health plan created or regulated under this Act (or an amendment made by this Act) to subject any individual or institutional health care entity to discrimination,

on the basis that the health care entity does not provide, pay for, provide coverage of, or refer for abortions.

(b) Definition- In this section, the term `health care entity' includes an individual physician or other health care professional, a hospital, a provider-sponsored organization, a health maintenance organization, a health insurance plan, or any other kind of health care facility, organization, or plan.

(c) Administration- The Office for Civil Rights of the Department of Health and Human Services is designated to receive complaints of discrimination based on this section, and coordinate the investigation of such complaints.