Wyoming House Labor Committee Kills Bill Allowing Ultrasound Before Abortion
by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
February 5, 2009
Cheyenne, WY (LifeNews.com) — The Wyoming House Labor Committee on Wednesday night killed HB 151, legislation that would have allowed women a chance to see an ultrasound of their unborn child prior to an abortion. Members of the panel voted 6-3 to defeat the bill sponsored by Casper pro-life Rep. Bob Brechtel.
When used in pregnancy centers, 88 percent of women who see an ultrasound wind up choosing life for their baby.
"Sadly, members of the Wyoming legislature remain out of touch with the majority of Wyoming residents who are pro-life and want the best for mothers and their unborn children," Right to Life of Wyoming said in response to the vote.
During the hearing, Brechtel told members of the panel that women are not always given all of the information they need about an abortion and its negative effects beforehand.
He told committee members that studies show virtually all abortion centers do an ultrasound before the abortion procedure so there is no reason not to provide women with that information beforehand.
Brechtel said that, in the interest of reducing abortions, the committee should send the bill to the full House for its consideration.
In addition to Right to Life, the bill enjoyed the support of the Diocese of Cheyenne and the WyWatch Family Institute.
A representative of the Wyoming Medical Society spoke against the bill, claiming it would be an unreasonable mandate on state physicians, even though only one abortion practitioner does advertised abortions in the state.
Members of Wyoming NARAL, Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains and the Wyoming chapter of the ACLU opposed the bill.
Additionally, pro-abortion Rep. Sue Wallis of Gillette vociferously opposed the bill in a profanity-laden speech telling the members of the panel that they shouldn’t be legislating on the issue of abortion.
Ultimately, Reps. Timothy Hallinan, Elaine Harvey and Kathy Davison voted for the bill.
Reps. Ken Esquibel, Lisa Shepperson, Patrick Goggles, Dave Bonner, Jack Landon, and Lori Millin opposed the abortion-ultrasound measure.
The committee held a partial hearing but did not complete its business on HB 154, a bill that pro-life advocates support that would require better abortion reporting by the state health department.
Related web sites:
Right to Life of Wyoming – https://www.prolifewyoming.com
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