Insurance Prohibition for Abortion
Does Colorado prohibit private insurance plans from covering abortion services? No.
Does Colorado prohibit plans in its state exchange from covering abortion services? No.
Does Colorado prohibit insurance plans for public employees from covering abortion services? Yes. The Colorado attorney general has issued an opinion stating that, pursuant to the state constitutional prohibition on the use of state funds for abortion except when necessary to save a woman's life, employee health-insurance policies provided by the state must exclude coverage for abortion, with an exception only to save a woman's life. Colo. Op. Att'y Gen. No. OLS8500339/ANY (Feb. 6, 1985); Colo. Const. art. V, § 50 (Enacted 1984).
Does Colorado prohibit the purchase of extra coverage for abortion services? No. Nothing in the law prohibits the purchase of abortion coverage through an optional rider; in theory, women may purchase a separate policy and pay an extra premium to receive abortion coverage. However, nothing in the law requires an insurer to make such riders available and there is little evidence that insurers offer these products. Colo. Op. Att'y Gen. No. OLS8500339/ANY (Feb. 6, 1985); Colo. Const. art. V, § 50 (Enacted 1984).
