Senate Bill No. 40
(By Senator Weeks)
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[Introduced January 11, 2006; 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 the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding
thereto a new section, designated §16-19-3a, relating to prohibiting the
use of the body of an unborn baby for any medical experimentation or
scientific investigation except as necessary to diagnose a disease or
condition suspected to exist in the mother's or fetus's body; and
prescribing criminal penalties for violation.
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 §16-19-3a, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 19. ANATOMICAL GIFT ACT.
§16-19-3a. Prohibition against using bodies of fetuses for certain
purposes.
The body of an unborn fetus may not be used for any medical experimentation
or scientific investigation, except as necessary to diagnose a disease or
condition suspected to exist in the body of the mother or the fetus. Any person
who violates the provisions of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon
conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than one thousand nor more than five
thousand dollars, or imprisoned up to six months in jail, or both fined and
imprisoned.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to prohibit the use of the body of an unborn
baby to be used for any medical experimentation or scientific investigation,
except as necessary to diagnose a disease or condition suspected to exist in the
mother's or fetus's body. The bill also prescribes criminal penalties for
violation of the section.
This section is new; therefore, strike-throughs and underscoring have been
omitted.