Wyoming House Republicans sing rousing chorus of "Every Sperm is Sacred"

Know Nothings in the Wyoming House want to turn back the clock on women’s health with its Joint Resolution No. HJ7, "Resolution-conscience rights." It passed third reading in the Wyoming House on Tuesday and has now been referred to the Senate Labor, Health and Social Services Committee.

Rep. Mary Throne, a Cheyenne Democrat and one of the few women in the Wyoming State Legislature, spoke against the resolution, saying women have a fundamental right to decide whether to get pregnant.

Let’s see if the Know Nothings in the Wyoming Senate, overwhelmingly Republican and male, will decide if women’s contraception decisions will be left to the whims of their employers.

Here’s an update from Sharon Breitweiser, Executive Director of NARAL Pro-Choice Wyoming:

HJ7 -- http://legisweb.state.wy.us/2012/Introduced/HJ0007.pdf -- calls upon President Obama to reverse a rule issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) requiring insurance coverage of all Food and Drug Administration approved contraceptive methods as well as sterilization without a co-pay or deductible.  The rule excludes churches/houses of worship and makes accommodations for religiously affiliated employers such as universities and hospitals.

HJ7 would put the Wyoming Legislature on record as opposing health insurance coverage of contraception and sterilization. 

Talking points:

·         The HHS rule on essential services is not about government mandates.  This is about the importance of reproductive medical care and women's health.  HHS heeded the findings of an independent panel of experts, the Institute of Medicine, which recommended that birth control be included as a preventive health care benefit. 

·         Forcing women to pay out-of-pocket for contraceptives puts an unfair, discriminatory cost burden on a certain segment of society, and women may choose not to use the most effective form of birth control due to cost concerns. 

·         Birth control pills are sometimes prescribed and used for many other medical conditions.  Allowing employers to exclude contraceptives from health insurance plans could also prove costly to individuals with such conditions. 

·         Contraception helps prevent unintended pregnancies, improves the quality of women's lives, and reduces the need for abortion.  

Please contact the five members of the Senate Labor, Health Committee and ask them to vote "NO" on HJ7:

Senator Charles Scott, Committee Chairman, charlesscott@wyoming.com

Senator Dan Dockstader - ddockstader@wyoming.com

Senator Marty Martin - mmartin@wyoming.com 

Senator Leslie Nutting - lnutting@wyoming.com 

Senator John Schiffer - jschiffe@wyoming.com