Senate Bill No. 640
(By Senator McKenzie)
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[Introduced February 11, 2008; referred to the Committee on
Health and Human Resources; and then to the Committee on the
Judiciary.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact §16-2B-2 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to prohibiting family planning
centers in West Virginia that receive state funding from
discussing abortion or abortion referrals.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §16-2B-2 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2B. FAMILY PLANNING AND CHILD SPACING.
§16-2B-2. Local boards of health authorized to establish clinics;
supervision; purposes; abortion not approved; approval
by state board of programs.
A local board of health, created and maintained pursuant to the
provisions of article two or article two-a of this chapter, is
authorized to establish and operate within its jurisdiction, one or more family planning and child spacing clinics under the supervision
of a licensed physician for the purpose of disseminating
information, conducting medical examinations and distributing family
planning and child spacing appliances, devices, drugs, approved
methods and medication without charge to indigent and medically
indigent persons on request and with the approval of said licensed
physician. Such information, appliances, devices, drugs, approved
methods and medication shall be dispensed only in accordance with
the recipients' expressed wishes and beliefs and in accordance with
all state and federal laws for the dispensing of legend drugs:
Provided, That the procedure of abortion shall not be considered an
approved method of family planning and child spacing within the
intent of this section and is expressly excluded from the programs
herein authorized.
In addition, no employee or representative of
any family planning center in this state that receives state funding
may discuss the prospect of abortion with any person seeking family
planning services. Nor may they make a referral to any person
seeking family planning services for an abortion: Provided,
however, That nothing in this section may be construed or
interpreted to endorse, allow, permit or approve of any abortion.
All local boards of health receiving state or federal funds for
family planning or child spacing programs shall first receive
approval by the
state Board of Health Department of Health and Human
Resources of their general plan of operation of such programs.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to prohibit family planning
centers in West Virginia that receive state funding from discussing
abortion or abortion referrals.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.