Senate Bill No. 628
(By Senators Harrison and Boley)
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[Introduced February 23, 2004; 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 except as required by
federal law. 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 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.