SENATE BILL No. 370

 

 

May 21, 2013, Introduced by Senators JOHNSON, WARREN, SMITH, ANDERSON, BIEDA, WHITMER and GREGORY and referred to the Committee on Health Policy.

 

 

 

     A bill to amend 1978 PA 368, entitled

 

"Public health code,"

 

(MCL 333.1101 to 333.25211) by adding part 98.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 

                  PART 98. EMERGENCY CONTRACEPTIVES

 

     Sec. 9801. This part shall be known and may be cited as the

 

"emergency contraceptive education act".

 

     Sec. 9803. The legislature finds all of the following:

 

     (a) Each year, 3,000,000 pregnancies, or 1/2 of all

 

pregnancies, in the United States are unintended, and 1/2 of all of

 

these unintended pregnancies end in abortion.

 

     (b) That the United States food and drug administration has

 

declared emergency contraception to be safe and effective in

 

preventing unintended pregnancy, reducing the risk of unintended

 


pregnancy by as much as 89%.

 

     (c) That the most commonly used forms of emergency

 

contraception are regimens of ordinary birth control pills taken

 

within 72 hours of unprotected sexual intercourse or contraceptive

 

failure.

 

     (d) That emergency contraception, also known as postcoital

 

contraception, is a responsible means of preventing pregnancy that

 

works like other hormonal contraception to delay ovulation, to

 

prevent fertilization, or to prevent implantation.

 

     (e) That emergency contraception does not cause abortion and

 

will not affect an established pregnancy.

 

     (f) That it is estimated that the use of emergency

 

contraception could cut the number of unintended pregnancies in

 

half, thereby reducing the need for abortion.

 

     (g) That emergency contraceptive use in the United States

 

remains low, and 9 in 10 women of reproductive age remain unaware

 

of the method of emergency contraception.

 

     (h) That although the American college of obstetricians and

 

gynecologists recommends that doctors routinely offer women of

 

reproductive age a prescription for emergency contraceptive pills

 

during their annual visit, only 1 in 5 obstetricians and

 

gynecologists routinely discuss emergency contraception with their

 

patients, suggesting the need for greater health care provider and

 

patient education.

 

     (i) That in light of their safety and efficacy, both the

 

American medical association and the American college of

 

obstetricians and gynecologists have endorsed more widespread

 


availability of emergency contraceptive pills, and have recommended

 

that emergency contraceptive pills be available without a

 

prescription.

 

     (j) That "healthy people 2010", published by the United States

 

department of health and human services, establishes a 10-year

 

national public health goal of increasing the proportion of health

 

care providers who provide emergency contraception to their

 

patients.

 

     (k) That public awareness campaigns targeting women and health

 

care providers will help remove many of the barriers to emergency

 

contraception and will help bring this important means of pregnancy

 

prevention to American women.

 

     Sec. 9805. (1) As used in this part:

 

     (a) "Emergency contraceptive" means a prescription drug that

 

meets both of the following criteria:

 

     (i) Is used after sexual relations.

 

     (ii) Prevents pregnancy by preventing ovulation, fertilization

 

of an egg, or implantation of an egg in a uterus.

 

     (b) "Health care professional" means an individual who is

 

licensed, registered, or otherwise authorized to engage in a health

 

profession under article 15.

 

     (c) "Health facility or agency" means that term as defined in

 

section 20106.

 

     (d) "Institution of higher education" means a degree or

 

certificate granting public or private college, university, junior

 

college, or community college.

 

     (e) "Prescription drug" means that term as defined in section

 


17708.

 

     (f) "Secretary" means the secretary of health and human

 

services.

 

     (2) Article 1 contains general definitions and principles of

 

construction applicable to all articles in this act.

 

     Sec. 9807. (1) Subject to subsection (3), the department shall

 

develop and disseminate to the public information on emergency

 

contraceptives.

 

     (2) The department may disseminate information developed under

 

subsection (1) directly or through arrangements with nonprofit

 

organizations, consumer groups, institutions of higher education,

 

federal, state, or local agencies, health facilities or agencies,

 

and the media.

 

     (3) The department shall include in the information

 

disseminated under subsection (1), at a minimum, a description of

 

emergency contraceptives, and an explanation of the use, safety,

 

efficacy, and availability of emergency contraceptives.

 

     Sec. 9809. (1) The department, in consultation with major

 

medical and public health organizations, shall develop and

 

disseminate to health care professionals and health facilities or

 

agencies information on emergency contraceptives.

 

     (2) The department shall include in the information

 

disseminated under subsection (1), at a minimum, all of the

 

following:

 

     (a) Information describing the use, safety, efficacy, and

 

availability of emergency contraceptives.

 

     (b) A recommendation regarding the use of emergency

 


contraceptives in specific, appropriate cases.

 

     (c) Information explaining how to obtain additional copies of

 

the information for distribution to the patients of the health care

 

professionals and health facilities or agencies.