A Democratic lawmaker in Alabama has proposed a law that would require all men to have vasectomies within one month of their 50th birthd...
A Democratic lawmaker in Alabama has proposed a law that would require all men to have vasectomies within one month of their 50th birthdays — or after the birth of their third child, “whichever comes first.”
The bill, proposed by Rep. Rolanda Hollis of Birmingham, would also require men to pay for the procedure with their own money, AL.com reported.
“A man, at his own expense, shall undergo a vasectomy within one month of his 50th birthday or the birth of his third biological child, whichever comes first,” says the bill, HB238.
Hollis said the bill is in response to a bill last year that enacted a a near-total ban on abortion. In October, a federal judge blocked that law from taking effect pending courts challenges.
“The vasectomy bill is to help with he reproductive system, and yes, it is to neutralize the abortion ban bill … it always takes two to tango,” she said. “We can’t put all the responsibility on women. Men need to be responsible also.”
Hollis said in a statement:
Many have seen HB-238 as an outrageous overstep; yet, year after year the majority party continues to introduce new legislation that tries to dictate a woman’s body and her reproductive rights. We should view this as the same outrageous overstep in authority.
The Vasectomy bill is meant to to neutralize last year’s abortion ban bill, and sends the message that men should not be legislating what women do with their bodies.
Just as I would turn to my doctor over my state legislator to make recommendations when deciding whether or not to have a surgery, or whether or not to take a certain type of medicine – it is my doctor with whom I – or any of my loved ones – should consult when it comes to making the incredibly difficult decisions related to my personal reproductive rights.
Alabama taxpayers have been forced to hand over more than $2.5 million in legal fees to the ACLU to fight unconstitutional attempts to restrict women’s access to reproductive healthcare, and the Majority party’s continued attempts to restrict women’s reproductive rights could cost Alabamians even more.
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