Ever since the Supreme Court handed down its infamous Roe v. Wade decision in 1973, legalizing abortion nationwide, a national debate has raged over whether the government should subsidize abortion, the legal practice of terminating the lives of unborn children in the womb. In 1976, Congress took its first definitive action in prohibiting taxpayer funding for elective abortions in Medicaid by passing the Hyde Amendment. Several states have followed suit, passing their own restrictions on abortion funding. However, because government funding is a complex system of joint federal and state programs, completely banning taxpayer funding for abortions and abortion businesses like Planned Parenthood is challenging. There is still much work to be done to free the American taxpayer from subsidizing the horrific practice of abortion.