[Abortion using health insurance]

The author reports on current German court rulings on whether non-medically indicated abortions (although not prohibited by law and therefore not actionable) should be financed via the compulsory health insurance scheme or by the Federal Government. 1. The social welfare court at Dortmund ruled that current legislation governing the financing of welfare expenditure violates the Federal German constitution, and has, therefore, referred this matter to the Federal Constitutional Court. However, the Federal Constitutional Court turned down the referral and dismissed the case, since an application for declaring a Federal law null and void can be filed by the Federal Government or by a Federal Land Government or by at least one-third of the total number of members of the Federal German Parliament (Bundestag) only. This means that the current proceedings at the Dortmund social welfare court must continue. The plaintiff pleads to prohibit the compulsory health insurance scheme authorities from defraying the expenses for performing foeticide via legally permitted abortion without medical indication. 2. The Federal Land Government of Baden-Württemberg is the only Land Government of the Federal Republic of Germany that does not grant any financial aid towards performing non-medically indicated (albeit not legally actionable) abortions. Hence, the Baden-Württemberg Administrative Courts turned down the plea filed by a woman government servant towards paying such aid. The court decision was based on the judge's opinion that even the principle of equality before the law guaranteed by the Constitution would not compel the Land Government to emulate the example of the other Land Governments who are agreeable to bearing abortion costs.