US Laws, Codes, Statutes & Cases

§16-2B-3. State and local health and welfare agency employees to advise indigent and medically indigent of availability of services; compulsory acceptance of services prohibited; acceptance not condition to receiving other services and benefits.

The state director of health, and commissioner of the department of welfare are directed to instruct their employees who work with the indigent and medically indigent to advise such indigent persons of the availability of the family planning and child spacing services offered by the state and local health departments: Provided, however, That no employee of the state of West Virginia or any employee of its agencies or of its political subdivisions, including but not limited to local health, or welfare agencies may compel any individual or family, either directly or indirectly, to accept or practice family planning, or any particular family planning method as a condition for receiving other public services or governmental benefits in any form nor shall any such employee or person represent to any individual or family, either directly or indirectly, that the acceptance or practice of family planning is a condition for receiving any public services or governmental benefits. Any violation of this section shall be grounds for dismissal or other appropriate disciplinary action.