Senate Approves Bill to Restore Money For Food-Safety Initiative, Farm Aid
WASHINGTON -- The Senate approved a $57 billion-plus agriculture spending bill that would restore money for President Clinton's food-safety initiative and provide $500 million in emergency aid for hardpressed farmers.</br></br>The Midwest and Texas are two likely beneficiaries of the farm aid, which sailed through on a voice vote and the endorsement of the White House. After days of pounding by Democrats on a growing economic crisis in the Farm Belt, Republican senators appeared to have little will to resist. Even on the food-safety initiative, the GOP split almost evenly in support of the White House's position.</br></br>Sen. Thad Cochran (R., Miss.), the bill's manager, joined in backing the amendment, adding $66 million for the food-safety program. Most of the money would go to programs within the Food and Drug Administration, and together with what was already in the bill, the White House will get a total of $68 million, or about three-quarters of its request.</br></br>Final Senate passage last night came as the House narrowly approved a $26.6 billion Treasury bill after a seesaw battle driven by partisan politics -- and the always divisive issue of abortion. Attached to the measure is a precedent-setting provision requiring that health-insurance plans for federal employees provide contraceptive coverage.</br></br>Antiabortionists have attached similar riders to ban abortion coverage, and the new provision is a major victory for women's rights groups. Beyond the abortion debate, the proposal touches on the issue of gender discrimination in health insurance. Young single women are often forced to bear the price of birth control, and if the contraceptives requirement is enacted for federal-employee health plans, it could have an influence on the entire health-insurance industry.