SENATE HEALTH COMMITTEE TO HOLD PUBLIC HEARING ON BILL ALLOWING PHARMACISTS TO PRESCRIBE CONTRACEPTIVES
By Matt Sande, Pro-Life Wisconsin Legislative Director
Legislation has been reintroduced by State Senator Mary Felzkowski (R-Irma) permitting pharmacists to prescribe and dispense hormonal contraceptive patches (the Patch) and self-administered oral hormonal contraceptives (the Pill) to persons 18 years of age and older. Currently, the Pill and the Patch may only be prescribed by a physician. Senate Bill (SB) 30 is co-authored by State Representatives Joel Kitchens (R-Sturgeon Bay) and Gae Magnafici (R-Dresser).
Pro-Life Wisconsin OPPOSES legislation in whatever form that makes hormonal contraceptives more easily accessible or widely available. Please view our legislative memo HERE opposing SB 30.
Studies demonstrate that the bill authors’ means to achieving lower unplanned pregnancies (easy contraceptive access and use) is unworkable. A significant percentage of unintended pregnancies are in women using contraceptives, generally over 40% and in some studies up to 68%.
At the core of our opposition to SB 30 is the abortifacient effect of hormonal contraceptives. It is a medical fact that the morning-after pill (a high dosage of the birth control pill) and most if not all hormonal birth control drugs and devices including the intrauterine device (IUD), Depo Provera, the Patch, and the Pill can act to terminate a pregnancy by chemically altering the lining of the uterus (endometrium) so that a newly conceived child (human embryo) is unable to implant in the womb, thus starving and dying. This mechanism of action is termed a pre-implantation chemical abortion.
When the Pill was first introduced it contained high estrogen levels with severe side effects. Today’s pills contain dramatically lower hormone doses which allow for breakthrough ovulation, embryo formation in the fallopian tube, and then blockage of implantation of the embryo in the uterine wall.
The bill authors contend that hormonal contraceptives have no “potentially harmful side effects that require a physician’s oversight.” We strongly disagree. Hormonal contraceptives have been proven dangerous to women’s health. The Pill is a known Group 1 carcinogen for breast, cervical and liver cancers according to the UN’s International Agency on Research of Cancer (IARC). Users of the Pill have an increased risk of blood clotting and ectopic pregnancy, both of which can be fatal. Lawsuits have been filed blaming the Patch for several deaths due to blood clots, heart attacks and strokes.
ACT NOW!
With your help, Pro-Life Wisconsin will lead the fight against SB 30 in the Wisconsin Senate. The Senate Health Committee will hold a public hearing on SB 30 tomorrow Tuesday, February 9, at 1:00 p.m. in Room 300 Southeast of the State Capitol. Matt Sande, Pro-Life Wisconsin Legislative Director, and Elizabeth Anderson, MD, Assistant State Director of the Wisconsin Catholic Medical Guilds, will testify against SB 30.
Please ATTEND the public hearing and testify or register against SB 30.
If you are unable to attend the public hearing, please CALL or EMAIL your state senator TODAY and urge him/her to OPPOSE SB 30. Tell them, “Hormonal contraceptives can kill embryonic children, are dangerous to women’s health, and do not reduce unplanned pregnancies!”
Don’t know your State Senator? Go to legis.wisconsin.gov and type in your home address under “Who Are My Legislators” or call the Legislative Hotline: 1-800-362-9472.
Thank you for making your pro-life voice heard!