COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP, WLTX) - Gov. Henry McMaster is removing $16 million for health care from the South Carolina budget to make sure no taxpayer money goes to abortion providers, even though some fellow Republicans said less than $100,000 of it would go to Planned Parenthood.
Other Republicans urged McMaster, who is running for re-election this year, to veto $34 million from the $8 billion budget. But the governor's office said eliminating all that money would keep 700,000 women and children from getting prescriptions through Medicaid.
"The veto that I have is the most direct way to get the money that is going to them for family planning services which in Planned Parenthood land means abortions," McMaster explained.
Some Republicans opposed removing any of the money, saying it was almost all for family planning and abstinence. They also warned that filling the funding hole created by the veto might hurt law enforcement or children with autism.
He said he understood those concerns, but the bigger concern was abortions.
"I'm going to veto that every opportunity I have," he said.
Planned Parenthood issued the following statement that read in part:
“Governor McMaster’s veto of family planning dollars today is a political stunt that will have very real implications for South Carolina’s women and families. Let’s be clear: in an effort to prevent South Carolinians from accessing reproductive healthcare services at Planned Parenthood, he is rejecting all federal family planning Medicaid dollars, regardless of the provider. People with low incomes who rely on Medicaid for their healthcare are more likely to be from already marginalized groups, including women, people of color and people with disabilities. As a result of this political move, none of the South Carolinians who rely on Medicaid for their healthcare will be able to access family planning services at any of the state’s 4,000 Medicaid providers."
Lawmakers could override the vetoes later with a two-thirds vote.