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House gives initial approval to ‘conscience rights for medical workers’ bill

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The House has given first round approval to legislation meant to allow medical workers in Missouri refuse to participate in certain procedures including abortion, human cloning and stem cell research if they have a religious or moral objection to them.

Majority Floor Leader Tim Jones (left) and Representative Stacey Newman. (photos courtesy, Missouri House Communications)

House Speaker Tim Jones (left) and Representative Stacey Newman. (photos courtesy, Missouri House Communications)

House Speaker Tim Jones (R-Eureka) says his bill has been tightened up from previous years to define what it means not to participate, to specify what medical professionals it would apply to and what procedures those professionals could decline to provide. 

The chamber voted 116-38 to move the bill one step closer to going to the Senate where it failed last year. 10 House Democrats voted with Republicans to advance the proposal, with one Republican voting against it.

See Jones’ legislation, HB 1430

Democrats speaking against the bill said it would allow the government to interfere in the decisions of women regarding their healthcare. Representative Stacey Newman (D-St. Louis) told a colleague, “To be clear, this is just one more vagina-specific bill in an election year that is designed to hurt women.”

Jones says Newman hasn’t read the bill.

“This is not a women-only bill. This is a human kind bill, because the procedures talk about human cloning. Well, that can be men or women. Human embryonic stem cell research … men or women; humans. Human somatic cell nuclear transfer, fetal tissue research: those issues involve men and women. They involve people. They involve children yet to be here.”

One more favorable vote would send the legislation to the Senate.

House approves conscience rights for medical workers legislation

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The House has passed its version of legislation to redefine what medical workers can choose not to do based on conscience.

House Speaker Tim Jones (photo courtesy; Tim Bommel, Missouri House Communications)

House Speaker Tim Jones (photo courtesy; Tim Bommel, Missouri House Communications)

The House version of conscience rights for medical workers legislation is sponsored by House Speaker Tim Jones (R-Eureka). He says the bill strengthens the definitions of the medical procedures it allows workers to opt out of.

“Abortion, abortion-inducing drugs, contraception, sterilization which is not medically necessary, assisted reproduction, human cloning, embryonic stem cell research, human somatic cell nuclear transfer, fetal tissue research and nontheraputic fetal experimentation. That’s it. If it’s not in the bill, it’s not included and you can’t use it as the basis for your objection to that medical procedure.”

Read the legislation, HB 457.

Jones says the bill could not be used to deny a woman access to emergency contraception in cases of rape. He says he has been assured, that is in keeping with Catholic doctrine.

“If it’s a rape then the idea is, under the doctrinal theory, that a pregnancy has not yet occurred so the drugs can be administered so the act of the pregnancy cannot occur with that short of a period of time, if you’re talking about the rape situation … I was told that directly from the Catholic authority. They showed me the directive.”

Several House Democrats speaking against the bill maintained it would deny emergency contraception.

Representative Stacey Newman (D-St. Louis) has opposed versions of this legislation in the past, and says this version causes her even greater concern.

“Remember the original bill was a conscience bill … that would allow any medical professional, any medical entity to refuse treatment for religious reasons. Because it had trouble in committee, this bill was narrowed to just deal with reproductive health … just deal with women.”

Jones tells the House his bill also specifically defines when a medical worker can and can not claim a conscience protection right.

The proposal goes to the Senate on a 116-41 vote, a great enough margin to overturn a Governor’s veto if no legislators change their votes.  11 Democrats voted for the bill.

Legislature overrides contraception insurance bill, doesn’t take up car tax bill

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The Missouri legislature has overridden Governor Jay Nixon’s veto of Senate Bill 749, legislation meant to allow individuals and employers to opt out of insurance coverage for abortion, birth control and sterilization. The Senate voted 26-6 for the override, the House had just enough votes for the necessary two-thirds majority, 109-45.

House Republicans hold a press conference following the adjournment of the annual veto session, led by new House Speaker, Tim Jones (at podium).

In debate in the House, three Democrat women spoke against the override. One of them, Stacey Newman (D-St. Louis), said the bill was not about religion. “Senate Bill 749 is actually about birth control. I also want to remind you what birth control is and what it means to women in Missouri. Birth control determines every woman’s social, their economic and their political equality. Every single woman.”

Representative Linda Black (D-Bonne Terre) noted her conservative record and pro-life beliefs when she spoke against the override. “I believe that the life blood starts at conception and that God protects that through the entire process and that we as human beings and citizens do everything to prevent abortions, but Mr. Speaker I don’t believe that this bill, in my heart, will prevent abortions. I think if we cut off the contraception to women, we’re going to create more abortions and I would never vote for anything that would create that possibility.”

Representative Tim Jones (R-Eureka), who was voted Speaker in the beginning of the veto session, said the issue was tied to the Affordable Care Act. “Senate Bill 749 was an effort to address some of those problems inherent in that bill. I credit Senator (John) Lamping with having the vision and the foresight to recognize that issue early on in the last session and to move that bill skillfully over to us in the House … it’s become more important than ever, because of the Supreme Court upholding Obamacare, that we work to protect the religious freedom, liberties, conscience rights and more importantly, the business decisions of Missouri’s small business owners from this massive federal intrusion.”

The bill is already the subject of a lawsuit filed this afternoon in Cole County Circuit Court, that says the law files both state and federal law including the Affordable Care Act, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, separation of church and state and Missouri employment discrimination statute.

This is the 24th veto override in the state’s history and the second in as many years, after the legislature last year overturned Governor Nixon’s veto of a bill establishing new congressional districts.

Vehicle sales tax issue to return in 2013 legislative session

The House did not take up HB 1329 to attempt to override that veto. Jones said in a morning press conference that there was “great concern” in his caucus about the bill, much of it stemming from the issue raised by the Governor of taxes being collected retroactively on more than 122,000 vehicle purchases made by Missourians from other Missourians, privately, or from out-of-state dealers.

Jones blamed the Governor for the legislation having flaws that resulted in the veto and discouraged lawmakers from voting to override that veto. “Our governor was absent from all policy discussion during the legislative session, and instead of weighing in in a timely fashion and offering a solution and offering leadership on the issue, he decided to veto the bill.”

Jones says he would support a special session to deal with that issue. Governor Nixon says that won’t happen.

House Democrat leader offers veto session predictions

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House Republicans could attempt overrides of several vetoes by Governor Jay Nixon, but two issues are expected to be at the forefront of today’s veto session.

House Minority Floor Leader Mike Talboy (D-Kansas City)

Republicans will have to start in the Senate to attempt an overturn of Senate Bill 749, to allow employers and individuals to opt out of insurance coverage for contraception, abortion and sterilization. House Minority Floor Leader Mike Talboy (D-Kansas City) says that veto will be tough to sustain.

“I think that if you look at the vote total, and if you look at the makeup of certain districts that some of our folks represent, I think that one is going to be the much tougher of the two to do.”

Talboy says Republicans will have a much harder time finding the votes to overturn the veto of HB 1329, to allow sales tax collections on vehicle purchases made out of state or from private Missourians.

“I know that there are some Democrats that, for their area, feel that it is vitally important. However unless you get to a 95, 96, 97-type area with the Republican votes, I don’t know that there are enough Democratic votes to even come close to anything there.”

A two-thirds majority, 109 votes, is necessary to overturn a veto in the House. When the bill passed in May it received 122 “yes” votes. 44 of those were from Democrats, but 16 Republicans voted against it.

Some lawmakers say enough Democrats might switch their vote to side with the Governor to fall short of the veto override. Or, they say Governor Nixon might have swayed enough lawmakers by saying more than 122 thousand Missourians will retroactively owe taxes on vehicle purchases made since March if the veto is overturned.

Talboy says the Governor’s office has been contacting members of his caucus. “As far as how many of them have had in-depth discussions, no I don’t know how many of those folks were there, but I know they’ve called me asking where I am and then kind of giving me the pitch on why they feel that it is important to veto and important to sustain the veto.”

The Kansas City Star reports one House Democrat was recently targeted in a mailer paid for by a nonprofit organization funded by the Democratic Governors Association, America Works USA, for supporting the bill in May. Representative Genise Montecillo (D-St. Louis) and 19 Republicans were the subjects of mailers.

Talboy says that hasn’t been popular among House Democrats. “That has caused some consternation in our caucus … but as far as whether or not it’s going to make any difference moving forward on this bill, I don’t think anybody that got the mailer changed their mind based upon it.”

Nixon vetoes contraception coverage legislation (VIDEO)

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Governor Jay Nixon has vetoed legislation that would have blocked mandatory insurance coverage for for abortion, contraception or sterilization for those who have moral, religious or ethical objections to those procedures. It would also prevent employees or employers from being penalized for refusing to have or offer such coverage.

Nixon says the bill would have allowed insurance companies to make the decision to deny such coverage even when employers and employees want it.

“This bill would allow insurance companies to override the rights and beliefs of employers and employees. By doing so, the bill would shift authority to make decisions about access to contraceptive coverage away from Missouri women, families and employers and put that power in the hands of insurance companies. That would be a step backwards for Missouri.”

Nixon says Missouri law already has, and he supports, such protections.

“Our existing law protects those religious liberties, and it respects individual rights. The current law was passed overwhelmingly, it has been on the books for years, and it works.”

Nixon says a “worthwhile idea” in the bill is a provision requiring notice be given to opt in or out of coverage.

“If the legislature were to pass a bill that includes the additional notice requirement for insurance policies without limiting access to contraception or shifting authorities to insurance companies, I would give that bill serious consideration and I’m certainly open to discussions about what that bill would need to look like.”

The bill’s backers say it would have blocked federal policy from making religious organizations pay for coverage for procedures they object to. Nixon says he didn’t consider that conflict in making his veto decision.

“My focus was on what this Missouri law would do in Missouri.”

House passes medical workers conscience bill

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The House has approved a proposal its sponsor says will let medical workers refuse to participate in certain procedures if they have a religious objection.

Majority Floor Leader Tim Jones (left) and Representative Stacey Newman. (photos courtesy, Missouri House Communications)

The bill outlines several procedures including abortion, contraception, human cloning, embryonic stem-cell research and non-theraputic fetal experimentation.

Several House Democrats spoke against the legislation, saying it is an attack on women’s reproductive rights. Representative Stacey Newman (D-St. Louis) says the original bill allowed medical workers to opt out of any medical procedure, but the scope was narrowed. “We’re talking about only those procedures that are unique to women’s reproductive health.”

Majority Floor Leader Tim Jones (R-Eureka) sponsored the bill. He defends it, and his motives. “This bill has to do with protecting the religious liberties of workers, of employees and individuals. A bedrock principle upon which this nation was founded.”

See the legislation, HB 1541.

Some Democrats tied the issue to the debate in Washington D.C. over religiously based institutions providing contraception to employees, but Jones maintained the bill was not about that. “I was working on this bill last November because of a situation that occurred in two different hospitals involving a group of female nurses who were forced to participate in an abortion procedure. They said they didn’t want to do that and they were terminated.”

Fourteen House Democrats voted with Republicans in passing the measure, 113-41. It now goes to the Senate for consideration.