MORGANTOWN – A divided Senate Health Committee on Tuesday approved SB 468, the Unborn Child with Down Syndrome Protection and Education Act.
Also on Tuesday, the Senate Education Committee approved a bill to create a Charter School Stimulus Fund.
Senate Health approved a committee substitute version of SB 468 not available to view, but as explained by counsel, it forbids performing an abortion on an unborn child with a disability, including Down syndrome, except in the case of medical emergency.
Violation of the law would subject the physician performing the abortion to professional board discipline; a provision making violation a felony was amended out.
The term disability is defined as: “A genetic, physical, emotional, or intellectual disability or diagnosis in the unborn human being including, but not limited to, chromosomal disorders or morphological malformations occurring as the result of atypical gene expressions.”
Dr. David Jude, a obstetrician and gynecologist in Huntington, testified against the bill, taking issue with the measure’s interference in the ability to choose.
There are congenital anomalies he said, that are not compatible with life outside the womb, he said. Also, the mother can suffer injuries that subject her to infection and organ damage.
“We just think its kind of inhumane to force someone to carry a pregnancy that they know is not going to result in a child that’s going to live or have a chance of surviving,” he said.
Emily Black, an Elkview business owner and mother of two told the story of her and her husband’s struggle to conceive their first child, leading to fertility treatments. After she conceived, she was monitored closely and early monitoring showed a healthy girl.
But the 18-week scan showed a problem and subsequent further imaging showed the child had no kidneys or bladder, had a hole in her heart and severe scoliosis. A consultation with a fetal specialist determined the child’s condition was incompatible with life outside the womb and at 20 weeks Black underwent induced labor to deliver.
In light of that testimony, Sen. Richard Lindsay, D-Kanawha, proposed an amendment to exclude a determination of incompatible with life outside the womb from the bill.
Majority Leader Tom Takubo, R-Kanawha and one of the committee’s three physicians, supported it, talking about the devastating effects of carrying a unborn child that can’t survive to term. “To force that individual, knowing, through the course of a pregnancy, it’s just not right.”
Committee chair Mike Maroney, R-Marshall and a physician, called the voice vote on the amendment in favor of the amendment, but the losing side demanded a roll call.
Maroney and the third physician both voted in favor of it, along with Takubo, but it failed 6-6. There was brief contention over the vote because Sen. Patricia Rucker, R-Jefferson, voted no via a Teams link and it was unclear if her vote was valid.
While that was being looked into, Rucker came to the room. Maroney offered a re-vote but Lindsay declined.
Sen. Ron Stollings, D-Boone and the other physician, offered the amendment to strike the criminal penalties in the bill. That was adopted 7-5.
The bill then passed in a divided voice vote and goes next to Finance for review of the accompanying fiscal note, which will be rewritten to match the amended bill.
Charter school bill
SB 644 creates a Charter School Stimulus Fund to offer support for charter school applicants and startups that don’t have funds for startup costs or for building remodeling or renovations.
The Professional Charter School Board will administer the fund and the state Board of Education will write the rules for operating it.
Initial grants will be up to $100,000 and must be returned if the school isn’t launched in 18 months. A second grant of $100,000 will also be available subject to the same conditions.
The fund will get money from legislative appropriations, grants, gifts and donations from any public or private source. Committee counsel said the bill doesn’t mandate legislative appropriations.
The bill passed in a divided voice vote and goes to Finance.
