H. B. 2899
(By Delegates Brown, Manuel, Webster,
Hatfield, Perdue and Fleischauer)
[Introduced February 7, 2003; referred to the
Committee on Health and Human Resources then the Judiciary.]
A BILL to amend chapter sixteen of the code of West Virginia, one
thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, by adding
thereto a new article, designated article two-j, relating to
emergency contraception.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That chapter sixteen of the code of West Virginia, one
thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended by adding
thereto a new article, designated two-j, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2J. EMERGENCY CONTRACEPTION.
§16-2J-1. Legislative findings.
The Legislature finds:
(1) Crimes of sexual assault cause significant physical,
emotional, and psychological trauma to the victims, and this trauma
is compounded by a victim's fear of becoming pregnant and bearing
a child as a result of the sexual assault;
(2) Each year over thirty-two thousand women become pregnant
in the United States as the result of sexual assault and
approximately fifty percent of these pregnancies end in abortion;
(3) Standards of emergency care established by the American
Medical Association require that sexual assault victims be
counseled about their risk of pregnancy and offered emergency
contraception;
(4) Many hospitals do not make emergency contraception
available to sexual assault victims; and
(5) As approved for use by the federal food and drug
administration, emergency contraception can significantly reduce
the risk of pregnancy;
(6) By providing emergency contraception to sexual assault
victims in a timely manner, the trauma of sexual assault can be
significantly reduced.
§16-2J-2. Definitions.
For the purposes of this article, the words or phrases defined
in this section have the meanings ascribed to them. These
definitions are applicable unless a different meaning clearly
appears from the context.
(1) "Emergency contraception" means any drug or device
approved by the federal food and drug administration that may
prevent pregnancy after intercourse.
(2) "Emergency care to sexual assault victims" means medical examinations, procedures, and services provided by a health care
facility to a sexual assault victim following an alleged sexual
assault.
(3) "Sexual assault victim" or "victim" means a female person
alleged to have been the victim of an offense defined in article
eight-b, chapter sixty-one of this code.
§16-2J-3. Emergency care to include informing sexual assault
victim of emergency contraception; providing
emergency contraception.
(a) It shall be the standard of care for hospitals that
provide emergency care to sexual assault victims in this state to:
(1) Provide each sexual assault victim with medically and
factually accurate and unbiased written and oral information about
emergency contraception;
(2) Orally inform each sexual assault victim of her option to
be provided emergency contraception immediately at the health care
facility; and
(3) Provide emergency contraception immediately at the health
care facility to each sexual assault victim who requests it:
Provided, That if the emergency contraception is in a form to be
orally administered, the provision must include the initial dose,
which the sexual assault victim can take at the hospital, and any
follow-up dose, which the sexual assault victim can self-administer
later.
(b) Every hospital providing services to alleged sexual
assault victims must develop a protocol that ensures that each
victim of sexual assault will receive medically and factually
accurate and written and oral information about emergency
contraception; the indications and counter-indications and risks
associated with the use of emergency contraception; and a
description of how and when victims may be provided emergency
contraception upon the written order of a licensed physician. The
department shall approve the protocol if it finds that the
implementation of the protocol would provide sufficient protection
for a victim of an alleged sexual assault.
(c) Each health care facility shall ensure that each person
who provides care to sexual assault victims is provided with
medically and factually accurate and unbiased information about
emergency contraception.
(d) In addition to any other remedies, the department of
health and human resources shall respond to complaints and shall
periodically determine whether health care facilities are complying
with this section. The department may use all means available to
verify compliance with this section. If the department determines
that a health care facility is not in compliance, the department
shall:
(1) Impose a fine of five thousand dollars for each sexual
assault victim denied medically and factually accurate and unbiased information about emergency contraception or who is not offered or
provided emergency contraception;
(2) Impose a fine of five thousand dollars for failure to
comply with subsection (b) of this section. For every thirty days
that the health care facility is not in compliance with subsection
(c) of this section, an additional fine of five thousand dollars
shall be imposed; and
(3) After two violations, suspend or revoke the certificate of
authority or deny the health care facility's application for
certificate of authority.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide rape victims
with reliable emergency information regarding pregnancy and
abortion, and to provide those victims with emergency contraception
if they desire it.
This article is new; therefore, strike-throughs and
underscoring have been omitted.