Kansas bill restricting private health insurance for abortions clears Legislature

? A proposal in Kansas to restrict private health insurance for abortions has cleared the Legislature.

The measure prohibits insurance companies from automatically covering abortions in their health plans, except to save a woman’s life. Individuals and employers wanting the coverage would have to buy separate abortion-only policies.

The House approved the measure 86-30 on Friday morning, sending it to Gov. Sam Brownback. The Senate passed it Thursday night, 28-10.

House members’ action came only hours after they had blocked its passage.

The House voted 70-51 early morning against the measure. But it later reconsidered and launched another debate.

The anti-abortion language is bundled with other insurance regulatory changes in a single bill. House members initially objected, not over the abortion language, but over other insurance proposals.