Members of the House move to regulate how the birth control drug RU-486 is administered and to protect pharmacies which do not wish to carry contraceptives.
HCS/HB28 is actually two bills combined into one.
Rep. Stacey Newman (D-St. Louis) doesn’t care for either one, telling colleagues it’s none of their business whether a woman wants access to birth control, even the morning after pill.
“The argument against the bill is clearly, it is full of inaccurate medical information. We are playing politics versus accurate, truthful, good public policy,” Newman states during House floor debate. “I find that extremely offensive as a woman.”
Yet, Rep. Paul Curtman (R-Pacific) focuses on the rights of pharmacies and states that none should be forced to sell products that they consider immoral.
“If there’s a guy who’s a pharmacist and he owns a pharmacy he should have the freedom to operate that pharmacy according to this own moral conscience and if he thinks that providing these drugs is a violation of his own set of moral codes, he ought to have the freedom to not be forced to go against his own moral codes,” Curtman tells the body. “This is really a freedom and liberty issue right here.”
The bill passes easily, 118-to-38, and moves to the Senate.
AUDIO: Brent Martin reports [:60 MP3]
