Again, in the "You've GOT to be kidding me" category

[forsyth]

(This category gets a lot of use lately)

Imagine the following scenario. You are at home alone at 8:00 on a Friday night. You are 8 weeks pregnant. All of a sudden, you begin to experience heavy cramping and bleeding. You realize with shock and sadness that you are probably experiencing a miscarriage. You are overwhelmed with grief and surprised by the intensity of physical pain involved. When your partner comes home, you break the sad news to him. Over the next few hours, you suffer pain, cramping, and intermittent bleeding. Exhausted, you finally fall asleep in your partner's arms around 4 AM. You sleep until noon.

Guess what? You just earned yourself up to 12 months in jail and a $2,500 fine. Why? Because you failed to call the cops and report your miscarriage within 12 hours.

True? Not yet. But if Delegate John Cosgrove (R-78) has his way, HB1677 will become law in a few short months, and this scenario will be reality for many women in Virginia. Incredulous? Outraged? Read on below the jump for more information on this odious bill.

(from DailyKos, via rev_tobias)

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2005/1/6/194434/1328

There's a more thorough update here. I really think we need to send the Virginia State assembly etc back to basic biology. These people are insane.

Anybody else in Virginia, write to John A. Cosgrove, the rep who introduced this. An if it comes up to the floor, your rep too, even if your rep is one who's not going to listen.

And thanks to Virginia law, this would require reporting for "any product of conception". At any time during pregnancy. Which would include the 80% or whatever of fertilized eggs that don't attach. My state is utterly mad.

[meta: politics]

Comments

[evilcarp.livejournal.com]

If someone goes to the hospital when they're having a miscarriage, does the hospital report it? Because a woman in this situation should go straight to the hospital.

I'm not saying the law's OK, I'm just wondering how many people will sit around while they're bleeding and cramping and not think they should see a doctor right away.

[forsythferret.livejournal.com]

Well, see, the really fun part, that I should have mentioned up above, and will do so in an update, is Virginia law would require this for "any product of conception". At any time during pregnancy. Which would include the 80% or whatever of fertilized eggs that don't attach. So, basically monthly, then. Thus why I said they need to know basic biology.

[evilcarp.livejournal.com]

Monthly? For each woman? You said fertilized eggs, right? Because each month, when I ovulate and the ova doesn't attach, it's not a fertilized ova.

[forsythferret.livejournal.com]

All women who've had sex in the last month, at any rate. Because the egg might have gotten fertilized, and BY LAW, they'd be required to check. How, I'm not sure at all, but that's what the law says, the way it's written.

The point isn't completely literal, but just pointing out the complete absurdity of the idea, as well as how little thought went into it.