SB 1353, the "conscience" bill, has passed the Senate on a 21-13 vote, but only after strong objections to the bill were expressed by many senators. "I probably could support this legislation had the authors not included the 'end-of-life' portion," said Sen. Joyce Broadsword, R-Sagle. Sen. Diane Bilyeu, D-Pocatello, said, "I guess I can envision myself making the decision to refuse nourishment, and quite frankly, I don't think that any health care professional should be able to override my decision." Said Sen. Shawn Keough, R-Sandpoint, "It's troubling to me that end-of-life and stem cell provisions ended up in this section of code, which is Title 18, Chapter 6, Abortions and Contraception. ... It is not in my mind just an extension of existing law, it's poorly written, mixes issues, ignores rural areas ... (and) invites costly lawsuits to the taxpayer."

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