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Three bills that affect women's reproductive health are scheduled to be taken up by the Michigan House of Representatives on Tuesday, February 2.
Three bills that affect women's reproductive health are scheduled to be taken up by the Michigan House of Representatives on Tuesday, February 2.
The Women's Health and Pregnancy Prevention package includes the following bills:
HB 5165 Emergency Contraception in the Emergency Room Introduced by Rep. Rebekah Warren, this bill requires that emergency contraception be offered to victims of sexual assault. According to a House Legislative Analysis, "the Department of Community Health would have to develop and disseminate information on emergency contraceptives for the public and also for the medical community" and details what type of information must be offered to both groups. The bill also cites a host of legislative findings about emergency contraception, detailed in the analysis.
HB 5155 Information about Emergency Contraception Introduced by Rep. Marie Donigan, this bill directs the Department of Community Health "to prepare and distribute medically and factually accurate written information about emergency contraception to health facilities and agencies that provide emergency or urgent care; this would have to be done within 30 days of the bill's effective date."
HB 5163 Comprehensive Sex Education Introduced by Rep. Alma Wheeler Smith, House Bill 5163 would require the board of a school district or public school academy that provides instruction in sex education to include comprehensive sexuality education that is medically accurate and age-appropriate. Since 1993, state law has required abstinence education to be included as an effective prevention against pregnancy and disease, and since 2004, state law has required that public school instruction on HIV, AIDS, and sex education emphasize abstinence, the consequences of sexual behavior, and refusal skills.
"Factual information" would include, but not be limited to, medical, psychiatric, psychological, empirical, and statistical statements. "Medically accurate" would mean verified or supported by research conducted in compliance with scientific methods and published in peer-reviewed journals, where appropriate, and recognized as accurate and objective by professional organizations and agencies with expertise in the relevant field, such as the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
HB 5164 Require to deliver lawfully prescribed drugs Introduced by Rep. Lisa Brown, this bill would require a pharmacy "to deliver lawfully prescribed drugs or devices to patients, as well as distribute FDA-approved drugs and devices for restricted distribution by pharmacies (i.e., emergency contraception, also known as the morning after pill). If this cannot be done, the pharmacy must provide a therapeutically equivalent drug or device in a timely manner consistent with reasonable expectations for filling a prescription."
Only a handful of exemptions, including an obvious or known error in the prescription, inadequacy in the instructions, known contraindications or unavailability of the drug or device, are allowed. Pharmacies may not destroy or refuse to return unfilled, lawful prescriptions, discriminate against patients or violate their privacy or fail on a persistent basis to have FDA-approved pregnancy prevention drugs or devices available for delivery. There is no exemption for "conscience".
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