Amendment to Protect the Health and Life of Women and Unborn Children
JEFFERSON CITY, MO – The Missouri House Children and Families Committee will consider a proposed constitutional amendment designed to better protect the health and life of women and unborn children. Sponsored by state Rep. Mike Moon, HJR 98 was assigned to committee this week by House Speaker Todd Richardson. The proposed change to the constitution would clarify that unborn children are persons with a constitutional right to life in Missouri.
If approved by the legislature, Moon’s HJR 98 would put the following question on the November ballot for voter approval: “Should the Missouri Constitution be amended to protect pregnant women and unborn children by recognizing that an unborn child is a person with a right to life which cannot be deprived by state or private action without due process and equal protection of law?”
Moon, R-Ash Grove, noted that with the Roe v. Wade decision, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected personhood for the unborn. However, he also pointed out that the Court conceded that if the unborn were legal persons, the Court would be required to reach the opposite conclusion.
Moon said he expects HJR 98 to receive a public hearing in the coming days.
