Under the law, which President Bush signed Dec. 8, doctors, hospitals, insurance companies and health plans cannot be required to provide or cover abortion-related services. Any state or local government that enforces such a requirement stands to lose millions in federal money for health care, education and unemployment programs.

Supporters of the measure say it's designed to keep states from punishing health care providers who decline to have anything to do with abortion.

"We have litigated several cases where health care professionals in places like California and Louisiana were punished or lost their jobs because of their pro-life convictions," said Jay Sekulow, chief counsel at the American Center for Law and Justice.

Critics say the new law amounts to an unconstitutional attack on the Supreme Court's 1973 decision in Roe v. Wade that legalized abortion. That decision will be 32 years old Jan. 22.

In California, which plans to file suit to block the law, Attorney General Bill Lockyer said the measure sends states this message:

"If you want back your own taxpayer dollars for important programs that serve all the people of your state, you first have to refuse to protect the constitutional rights of the women who live in your state.

"This is wrong; it is unlawful," he said.

Other critics of the law said it runs directly counter to a federal family planning program -- Title X -- that requires about 4,500 health care clinics across the country to provide abortion referral services to any of about 5 million poor and low-income women who might request it.

The new law "cuts off access to abortion services and information," said Marilyn Keefe, vice president of public policy at the National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association, made up of 4,000 health clinics. "I don't think they (Congress) understood what it was doing."

Caught in the controversy are hundreds of local family planning agencies across the country that depend on federal funds to provide reproductive services, including abortion referrals, to poor and low-income women.

"I think all women deserve access to all reproductive options, and this law makes it unclear," said Julie Conway, a spokeswoman for the Ozarks Community Action Corporation in southwest Missouri, which provides reproductive services and counseling to 6,500 poor and low-income women. "A woman's right to choose is still a legal option."

Conway also said the law opens the door for groups that don't provide abortion information or services to compete for Title X family planning funds. This year, Congress approved $288 million for programs under Title X.

Abortion rights groups also say that in a worst-case scenario, the new law may endanger women who need an abortion as a life-saving measure. That's because the new law makes it uncertain whether a health care professional could be disciplined for refusing to perform an abortion or making an abortion referral in such a circumstance.

The new law passed Congress as part of a massive spending bill. It was introduced in Congress by Republican Rep. Dave Weldon of Florida, an internist, who said he drafted the provision because he doesn't want the courts or regulators to "force health plans, hospitals or other providers to start doing abortions, or paying for abortions or referring for abortions."

State laws in 46 states already allow health professionals to refuse to provide abortion services for religious or moral reasons. Sixteen of those states allow private institutions to opt out of providing abortion services. One of those states is California, where only religious entities may opt out.

The new law does not require health professionals to cite a religious or moral reason in deciding not to provide abortion services.

The law's fate ultimately will be decided in the courts.

The National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association filed suit last month to stop the law from taking effect. A decision is expected soon. California also plans to sue, saying the law interferes with its right to enforce reproductive laws.

Other states also are considering legal action.

----

On the Web:

www.aclj.org, American Center for Law and Justice.

www.nfprha.org, National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association.