Senate Measure to Reopen Government Doesn’t Include Obamacare Subsidies That Fund Abortions

A bipartisan Senate deal to end the longest government shutdown in U.S. history cleared a key procedural hurdle Sunday, paving the way for federal operations to resume by midweek.

The good news for pro-life Americans is the deal was done without adopting enhanced Obamacare subsidies that enable taxpayer funding of elective abortions.

The measure, which extends government funding through January 30, 2026, passed a 60-40 vote to advance, with eight Democrats crossing the aisle to join Republicans in overcoming a filibuster. It includes full-year appropriations for the departments of Agriculture, Veterans Affairs and the legislative branch, while maintaining fiscal 2025 levels for other agencies.

The deal also provides back pay and reinstatement for thousands of furloughed or laid-off federal workers, as well as the resumption of paused payments like food stamp benefits.

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Lawmakers expect the Senate to give final approval by Tuesday or Wednesday, followed by a House vote once Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., recalls members from recess. President Donald Trump voiced support for the agreement, saying, “It looks like we’re getting very close to the shutdown ending.”

The 40-day closure, triggered by Democratic demands for immediate extension of Obamacare premium tax credits set to expire December 31, marked the longest in American history, surpassing a 35-day standoff in 2018-2019.

A battle over Obamacare subsidies and abortion is forthcoming.

While the deal secures a Senate vote on the subsidies by mid-December — a concession from Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., who said, “I’m looking forward to seeing what solutions might be brought forward… I will schedule a vote on their proposal, and I have committed to having that vote no later than the second week in December” — it omits the extension itself.

Republicans deemed inclusion a “nonstarter,” arguing the subsidies pad insurance company profits and lack safeguards against funding abortions.

Although the measure to reopen government doesn’t include the abortion-funding subsidies, it also doesn’t include language to stop them from funding abortions.

From a pro-life standpoint, the omission represents a critical missed opportunity to protect taxpayers and unborn children. However, that battle is coming next month.

Pro-life groups, including Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, have lobbied fiercely for any subsidy extension to incorporate Hyde Amendment protections, the longstanding federal ban on using taxpayer dollars for most abortions. Without it, they warn, the credits continue to flow to insurance plans covering elective procedures under the ACA’s Section 1303, which mandates separate billing for abortions but allows indirect federal support through what advocates call an “accounting gimmick” known as the “abortion surcharge.”

“This ‘accounting gimmick,’ colloquially known as the ‘abortion surcharge,’ allows health insurance plans on Obamacare exchanges to cover elective abortion and still receive taxpayer funds; so long as they collect the surcharge,” reads a letter from more than 100 pro-life and conservative organizations (including LifeNews.com) sent to Congress on Oct. 22.

Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, “strongly opposes and will score against any offers by Senate Democrats that attempt to pass a ‘clean’ extension of the Affordable Care Act Enhanced Premium Tax Credit subsidies — even for one year.”

She added, “Any such attempts that do not explicitly include Hyde protections would extend taxpayer-funded abortion through these subsidies.”

Kelsey Pritchard, a spokesperson for the group, emphasized the stakes: “The subsidies can go to health care plans that cover abortion, and that means our taxpayer dollars are funding abortion.” She urged Republicans to “stay true to your pro-life values,” adding, “If you are going to extend the subsidies, you have to make sure they’re Hyde compliant. That should be nonnegotiable.”

The push echoes recent legislative efforts, such as the “No More Loopholes Act” introduced by Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., last month. The bill would prohibit Obamacare exchange plans from covering abortions except in cases of rape, incest or life-threatening situations to the mother, targeting state workarounds that evade Hyde restrictions.

“It’s time to ban abortion and gender transitions for minors on the healthcare exchanges. No more loopholes,” Hawley said in announcing the measure.

Fellow Republicans have tied the issue directly to the shutdown fight.

Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., accused Democrats of holding the government “hostage” to advance their agenda, declaring on the Senate floor, “One of the Democratic Party’s fundamental reasons [for extending Obamacare subsidies] is that ‘they want to kill babies in the womb.’”

Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., decried the impasse as “disgusting that Democrats are shutting down the government to continue to hide the failures of Obamacare with massive taxpayer-funded subsidy checks to insurance companies that can fund abortions and [transgender] surgeries.”

Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., a physician, reinforced the moral imperative: “Americans’ tax dollars should never be used to fund the killing of unborn children or dangerous gender transition procedures. We need to end the Schumer Shutdown so we can make health care more affordable, not subsidize Democrats’ radical anti-family, anti-patient agenda.”

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