(Washington, DC) -- One of the big sticking points for the health care reform effort continues to be abortion funding.
The question is where that issue fits in now that the House has settled on its version of a reform bill.

 A fight over federal funding for abortion nearly derailed health care reform in the House.  But pro-life lawmakers, led by Democrat Congressman Bart Stupak, ultimately succeeded in banning that funding stream.

And the debate now heads to the Senate where there is some bi-partisan support for a similar measure.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) acknowledged,  "...I expect that the bill that will be brought to the floor will ensure that no federal funds are used for abortion."

"I think there is a broad support to say that federal money should not be used to pay for abortions," said Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY).

But there is clearly no consensus - yet.

"This ban puts health - the health of women and young girls - at grave risk," argues Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY). "Proposing that women instead purchase a separate abortion rider is not only discriminatory but ridiculous."

But pro-life advocates say the president may have a tough time reconciling his vocal support for groups like Planned Parenthood - with their demands that any measure banning federal funding for abortions be stripped from health care legislation.

Charmaine Yoest with Americans United for Life says: "The president keeps repeating that he doesn't want to see federal funding for abortion in the health care reform package. The bottom line truth is, if that is true you have to have an explicit ban on federal funding in the language of the bill."

Regardless of what winds up in the Senate measure, the bills from both houses of Congress will ultimately have to go into conference to be blended into a single version.

Today, pro-choice Democrat Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz said she is confident that the final measure that emerges will not contain any restriction on federal funding for abortions.

And she isn't the only pro-choice Democrat working to undo the Stupak amendment.   Congressmember Diana Degette says she has collected 40 signatures for a letter to Democrat leaders pledging to vote down the final health care reform bill if it still contains the Stupak amendment.



(Shannon Bream - FOX News)