Senate Bill No. 518

(By Senators Weeks, Smith, Minear, Prezioso and Deem)

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[Introduced February 13, 2003; referred to the Committee on Health and Human Resources; and then to the Committee on the Judiciary.]

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A BILL to amend article forty-two, chapter thirty-three of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated section nine, relating to requiring physicians who perform abortions to provide information to the pregnant woman twenty-four hours before the abortion is performed detailing the fetal development, risks and alternatives; and providing for a penalty.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That article forty-two, chapter thirty-three of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section nine, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 42. WOMEN'S ACCESS TO HEALTH CARE ACT.
§33-42-9. Information required to be given by a physician before performing an abortion; penalty.

At least twenty-four hours before a physician performs an abortion, the physician shall provide the pregnant woman with information that details the fetal development, the risks and the alternatives to the abortion.
A physician that violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than one hundred dollars nor more than five hundred dollars.


NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to require that twenty-four hours before an abortion is performed, the physician shall provide information detailing the fetal development, the risks and the alternatives to the abortion; and provides for a penalty.

This section is new; therefore, strike-throughs and underscoring have been omitted.