Trump administration threatens funds to California over requirement that health plans cover abortion
California officials accuse officials of political grandstanding, say they’ll defend law.
William Wan and Yasmeen Abutaleb
Jan. 24, 2020
The Trump administration on Friday threatened to withhold federal funding from California over its requirement that private insurers cover abortions — a move California officials immediately denounced as a “cheap political” shot on the day the president was addressing the annual March for Life rally.
Top Trump health officials said California had 30 days to stop the alleged violation but did not specify what funds it would withhold or on what timeline it would act. They said their announcement serves as warning to other states with similar requirements but declined to identify which, if any, of those states might be targeted.