Senate Bill No. 107
(By Senators Weeks and Smith)
____________
[Introduced January 14, 2004; referred to the Committee on Health and
Human Resources; and then to the Committee on Finance.]
____________
A BILL to amend the code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto
a new section, designated §16-5-20a, relating to requiring the collection of
statistics relative to abortions performed in the state.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That
the code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended by adding thereto a new
section, designated §16-5-20a , to read as follows:
ARTICLE 5. VITAL STATISTICS.
§16-5-20a. Aborted fetus registration.
(a)
A fetal death certificate for each fetal death caused by abortion which occurs
in this state shall be filed with the local registrar of the registration
district in which the abortion occurs within three days after the abortion and
prior to removal or disposal of the fetus, and shall be registered with the
registrar. The medical practitioner responsible for the performance of the
abortion is responsible to provide the following information to be recorded in
accordance with the provisions of this section: (1) The gestational age of the
fetus; (2) the county of residence of the mother; (3) the age of the mother; (4)
the type of abortion performed; (5) the cost of the abortion and whether it was
performed at public expense; (6) the method of disposal of the remains; and, (7)
whether birth defects were known, and if so, what birth defects.
(b)
Each local registrar shall provide the data collected under this section to the
director of the department of health, who shall compile same for publication.
NOTE:
The purpose of this bill is to require the collection of statistics relative to
abortions performed in the state.
This
section is new; therefore, strike-throughs and underscoring have been omitted.