Actions Taken On Women's Health Legislation, Policy In Colorado, North Carolina, Oklahoma

Main Category: Women's Health / Gynecology
Article Date: 15 Feb 2008 - 7:00 PDT

email to a friend   printer friendly   view / write opinions   rate article

The following highlights recent state news about women's health policy and legislation.

• Colorado: The Senate State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee voted 3-2 Monday to reject a bill (SB 95) that would have required physicians to provide women seeking abortions information about receiving an ultrasound image and administer one if requested, the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel reports. The bill, sponsored by Sen. David Schultheis (R), also would have required women seeking abortions to wait 24 hours between signing an informed consent form about the ultrasound and undergoing the procedure. Jennifer Karska, executive director of the Colorado Catholic Conference, said offering ultrasounds will not make abortions harder to receive but would help women make better, more informed decisions. Sen. Chris Romer (D) said the bill "puts a burden on certain people ... and it's not the right way to go." He added that although everyone can agree that abortions should be rare, placing more burdens on women seeking the procedure is not the right way to accomplish that goal (Saccone, Grand Junction Daily Sentinel, 2/11).
  
  
• North Carolina: Advocates are calling on the state to pay the full cost of examination kits used to collect biological evidence against sexual assault suspects, the Raleigh News & Observer reports. The average cost of a sexual assault kit is $1,600. About 3,000 emergency department patients examined for sexual assault annually have to pay some of the cost of the examination. Hospitals usually charge the survivor's insurance company, which in turn requires ED copayments and deductibles, the News & Observer reports. For uninsured patients, hospitals send bills to the NC Department of Crime Control and Public Safety, which caps reimbursements for kits at $1,000. The state's Rape Victims Assistance Program covers the cost of assembling about 3,000 kits annually. The remaining money, about $258,000, goes to covering hospital bills for the uninsured sexual assault survivors. Hospitals ultimately settle the balance of the bill with the patient, which can top $1,000, according to the News & Observer. Leaders at the state Conference of District Attorneys agreed that women should not have to pay the cost of the kits but were unsure which agency should pay, the News & Observer reports. Sometimes hospitals forgive the debt or work out a payment plan. "The bottom line is these services cost money," Rebecca Andrews -- vice president of finance at WakeMed Hospital in Raleigh, N.C. -- said adding, "We do sometimes forgive. It's case by case" (Locke, News & Observer, 2/13).
  
  
• Oklahoma: On Monday the House Civil Justice Subcommittee preliminarily approved several measures aimed at restricting access to abortion services, the AP/Oklahoman reports. One measure (HB 2771) would allow physicians, nurses and other health care providers to refuse to participate in an abortion if it is "contrary" to their "religious beliefs or moral convictions." Another bill (HB 2709) would require abortion providers to perform an ultrasound on women seeking abortions and offer women an opportunity to view the images. A third bill (HB 3059) would require signs to be posted in abortion clinics that say it is illegal for anyone to force a pregnant woman to have an abortion, regardless of their relationship with the woman. Eight bills supported by abortion-rights opponents have been filed in the House and Senate for the 2008 legislative session, including one that would regulate the medication abortion pill mifepristone, also known as RU-486, the AP/Oklahoman reports (AP/Oklahoman, 2/11).

Reprinted with kind permission from http://www.nationalpartnership.org. You can view the entire Daily Women's Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery here. The Daily Women's Health Policy Report is a free service of the National Partnership for Women & Families, published by The Advisory Board Company.

© 2007 The Advisory Board Company. All rights reserved.