Rep. Carlos Bilbao, R-Emmett, sponsor of HB 530, told the House Health & Welfare Committee, “If it's for medical reasons, I have no problem. It's also legal for you to use it to end life, that's your business. But I say to you and the federal government, do not ask me to pay for your abortions and your contraceptives. Do not. And the federal government is saying I will.”
Bilbao said his bill was prompted by the federal health care reform law requiring contraceptive coverage as part of basic health care. It would let any policy exclude contraceptives because “I do not know whether it's going to be a pill used to end life or fix a medical problem,” he said. “When I think it is wrong, it is wrong whether you like it or not. That is for you to judge.” He urged passage of the bill.
Betsy Z. Russell covers Idaho news from The Spokesman-Review's bureau in Boise.
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