The measure passed the Senate after the defeat Wednesday night of another version drafted by the only three women in the Senate, all of whom are Republicans. Sen. Betty Sims, R-St. Louis County, told the Senate that it was time women legislators were included in the debate about abortion.
And even if sexual predators do manage to get out of prison, the bill requires that the Corrections Department keep them on parole, so they can be monitored, said Sen. Betty Sims, R-St. Louis County, who sponsored the legislation in the Senate.
The only significant change made to the bill was the withdraw of a provision requiring a psychological exam for first-time offenders. Sen. Betty Sims, R-St. Louis County, said there was a constitutional question to that provision.
That distinction puts convicts on parole for life. Bill sponsor, Senator Betty Sims says the new legislation is meant to keep someone with a true mental illness under the permanent supervision of the Corrections Department.
Sen. Betty Sims, R-St. Louis County, HMOs need more regulation because of Missouri's Medicaid program. The state contracted out seven different HMO plans in 1994 for the program which finances health care for the low income.
But the bill's sponsor, Sen. Betty Sims, R-St. Louis County, said she drafted her bill so insurance companies wouldn't be the ones making the medical decisions.
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