‘Reproductive Freedom’ Measure Clears First Hurdle
DENVER — After the kind of lengthy emotional debate always triggered by policy proposals affecting abortion rights, Senate Democrats gave a first go-ahead to a proactive bill that seeks to protect women’s reproductive health decisions from future challenges.
The Reproductive Health Freedom Act, which prohibits state or local government entities from enacting any policy that denies or interferes with an individual’s reproductive health care decisions, or an individual’s access to current evidence-based, scientific information on the topic, cleared the Senate Health and Human Services Committee on a 4-3 vote Thursday.
The sponsor, Sen. Andy Kerr, D-Lakewood, called the measure “an effort to keep politics and politicians away from Coloradans’ health care and reproductive decisions.
“The bill simply protects personal freedom and women’s and families’ rights to determine what’s appropriate according to their own value system,” he said.