Tulsa World editorial: New abortion bill challenged

[Heidi]

Last Modified: 10/1/2009 4:42 AM

What a surprise: A controversial abortion measure passed last session has resulted in a lawsuit. Or should we say, another lawsuit.

This is the sort of outcome lawmakers can continue to expect if they want to keep trying to practice medicine and load up new laws with all kinds of irrelevant, unnecessary and unjustifiable requirements.

The latest challenge is over House Bill 1595, which would require physicians to transmit detailed information about patients receiving abortions to the Oklahoma State Department of Health. Required information includes age, marital status and education level of the patient; number of previous pregnancies; a reason for the abortion; cost of and payment method for the procedure; and the nature of the mother's relationship with the father. It was to go into effect Nov. 1.

The value of such information to state authorities is questionable at best, and invasive and indefensible at worst. But that's not the only problem with this measure. Plaintiffs challenging it in Oklahoma County District Court contend it violates Oklahoma's constitutional requirement that a law cover only one subject. They allege this one covers four subjects.

<snip>

As one advocate put it, these abortion restrictions have nothing to do with protecting Oklahomans and everything to do with the political agendas of the lawmakers who push them.

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[sinkingfeeling]

1. And Oklahoma lawmakers have no problems with anything else related to the state's children.

Like ranking in the bottom ten education wise or health care wise.
http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=16&articleid=20090916_16_A12_OKLAHO83270

In 2008, almost one in three Oklahomans received services from the Oklahoma Department of Human Services, Dunn said.

Slightly more than 60 percent of all Oklahoma births that year were funded by Medicaid, he said.

And slightly more than 42 percent of the births were to unmarried women.

Some 40,243 Oklahoma children in 2008 received taxpayer-subsidized child care so a parent could work, Dunn said.

Nationally, up to 43 percent of all first-time marriages end in divorce, he said.


Edited because I was shocked that 1/3 of all Oklahomans received help.

[Heidi]

2. Don't I know it.

I grew up there.