Wyoming Constitutional Amendment A, Right to Make Healthcare Decisions and Direct Healthcare Payments Amendment (2012)
| Wyoming Constitutional Amendment A | |
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| Election date |
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| Topic Constitutional rights and Healthcare |
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| Status |
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| Type Legislatively referred constitutional amendment |
Origin |
Wyoming Constitutional Amendment A was on the ballot as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment in Wyoming on November 6, 2012. It was approved.
A "yes" vote supported this amendment to: • provide a state constitutional right to adults to make their own healthcare decisions; • provide a state constitutional right to persons to make direct payments to healthcare providers without penalties; and • allow the Legislature to determine reasonable and necessary restrictions on these rights "to protect the health and general welfare of the people or to accomplish the other purposes set forth in the Wyoming Constitution." |
A "no" vote opposed adding this amendment to the Wyoming Constitution. |
Election results
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Wyoming Constitutional Amendment A |
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| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
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181,984 | 76.98% | ||
| No | 54,405 | 23.02% | ||
Aftermath
On November 19, 2024, Teton County District Judge Melissa Owens ruled that Wyoming's abortion ban and prohibition on abortion medication, enacted in 2023, were unconstitutional based on Amendment A. Teton said the measures were unconstitutional because the amendment says "Each competent adult shall have the right to make his or her own health care decisions."[1]
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot title for Constitutional Amendment A was as follows:
| “ | The adoption of this amendment will provide that the right to make health care decisions is reserved to the citizens of the state of Wyoming. It permits any person to pay and any health care provider to receive direct payment for services. The amendment permits the legislature to place reasonable and necessary restrictions on health care consistent with the purposes of the Wyoming Constitution and provides that this state shall act to preserve these rights from undue governmental infringement. | ” |
Full Text
The full text of this measure is available here.
Constitutional changes
- See also: Wyoming Declaration of Rights
Constitutional Amendment A added a Section 38, titled Right to Health Care Access, to the Wyoming Declaration of Rights. The following underlined language was added:[2]
(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.
(b) Any person may pay, and a health care provider may accept, direct payment for health care without imposition of penalties or fines for doing so.
(c) The legislature may determine reasonable and necessary restrictions on the rights granted under this section to protect the health and general welfare of the people or to accomplish the other purposes set forth in the Wyoming Constitution.
(d) The state of Wyoming shall act to preserve these rights from undue governmental infringement.[3]
Path to the ballot
A two-thirds vote is required during one legislative session for the Wyoming State Legislature to place a constitutional amendment on the ballot. That amounts to a minimum of 42 votes in the Wyoming House of Representatives and 21 votes in the Wyoming State Senate, assuming no vacancies. Amendments do not require the governor's signature to be referred to the ballot.
The constitutional amendment was introduced into the state Legislature as Senate Joint Resolution 2 (SJR 2). On February 1, 2011, the Senate voted 23-7 to pass the amendment. On February 15, the House voted 49-11 to pass the amendment.[4]
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Newsweek, "Judge Turns Tables on Wyoming Republicans to Block Abortion Ban," accessed November 19, 2024
- ↑ Wyoming Secretary of State, "2012 Ballot Issues," accessed March 23, 2023
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source.
- ↑ Wyoming State Legislature, "Senate Joint Resolution 2," accessed March 23, 2023
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