Mazzie Boyd District 2 Capitol Report
To the Great Constituents of District 2,
In the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years.
-Abraham Lincoln, 16th President of the United States
On Thursday, February 9th, there was an article released regarding a whistle blower named Jamie Reed who worked at The Washington University Transgender Center at St. Louis Children’s Hospital in Missouri. Jamie worked at the hospital and recounts her story online on the website: ‘The Press’ Link can be found here: https://www.thefp.com/p/i-thought-i-was-saving-trans-kids. Jamie Reed states: “By the time I departed, I was certain that the way the American medical system is treating these patients is the opposite of the promise we make to ‘Do No Harm.” Instead, we are permanently harming the vulnerable patients in our care.” Reed confirms everything that I have been talking about and with my bill HB 463 that would prevent transition surgeries and puberty blockers from being administered to children. She stated, “I left the clinic in November of last year because I could no longer participate in what was happening there,” penned Reed.
As another week passes, more bills are coming to the floor to be voted on. On the docket this week which was passed out of the house was HB 301 which is a wide-ranging public safety bill that includes a key provision that would allow the governor to appoint a special prosecutor in areas of the state with an excessive homicide rate. The bill specifies the governor would be empowered to appoint a prosecutor in any circuit or prosecuting attorney’s jurisdiction that has a homicide rate in excess of 35 cases per 100,000 people and where the governor determines there is a threat to public safety and health. The special prosecutor would be appointed for a period of up to five years.
HBs 115 & 99/ HBs 115 & 99 would allow patients to have direct access to physical therapy.
A physical therapist would no longer need a prescription or referral from a doctor in order to evaluate and initiate treatment on a patient. To qualify, the physical therapist would need a Doctorate of Physical Therapy Degree or five years of clinical practice as a physical therapist.
Lastly, the house approved HB 14 and will have one more vote before moving to the senate. HB 14 allocates more than $627 million in funding. Some of the highlights of the supplemental spending plan include: 8.7% pay increase for state workers (this does not include the general assembly and statewide elected officials). $286.5 million in spending authority for the State Emergency Management Agency. $628,750 appropriation to the Department of Agriculture to help address the growing black vulture problem impacting livestock owners statewide and $20 million to establish school safety programs.
It’s a pleasure to serve and as always if you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to my office at (573) 751-4285 or email me at [email protected].
All my Best,
Mazzie Boyd, State Representative for District 2