USA

Posted: 9:18 AM Nov 21, 2008

Heineman Signs New Safe Haven Law

Nebraska Governor Dave Heineman has signed a new safe haven law, limiting the age limit to children 30 days old or less. The new law will take effect at 12:01 a.m. November 22nd.

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Nebraska lawmakers gave final approval to the bill Friday morning. The old law had been used to abandon 35 children at state hospitals since July; many of them pre-teens or teenagers as old as 17.

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The old law was meant to prevent newborns from being dumped in trash bins or worse. But it was the only one in the country that lacked an age limit. Five of the children abandoned have been from other states, including from as far away as Florida and Michigan.

Sec. 38. Right of health care access.

(a) Each competent adult shall have the right to make his or her own health care decisions. The parent, guardian or legal representative of any other natural person shall have the right to make health care decisions for that person. https://sos.wyo.gov/Forms/Publications/WYConstitution.pdf#page=9

Owens (Teton County District Court Judge Melissa Owens) added “the state cannot legislate away a constitutional right. It’s not clear if abortion is or isn’t health care, and the court has to then decide that.”

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She also told Jay Jerde, a special assistant attorney general for Wyoming who is defending the law for the state, “I’m just still hung up on abortion not being health care,” the Times reported.

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“An abortion can only be performed by a licensed medical professional, so what authority does the legislature have to declare that abortion is not health care when our laws only allow a licensed medical professional to administer one?” she asked Jerde during the hearing.