HB 2372: Omnibus Healthcare, Doula Program & Standing Orders
Sponsor: Rep. Tara Peters
STRONGLY OPPOSE
Violates Constitution • Funds Abortion Infrastructure • Expands Bureaucracy
HB 2372 is a 51-page omnibus healthcare bill that bundles at least 19 distinct policy subjects—including a new doula reimbursement program, public health NGO contracting, and standing order authority—under a single vague title. While containing some minor technical updates, the bill creates massive new government programs without pro-life guardrails, potentially funding abortion support infrastructure in a post-Amendment 3 Missouri.
HB 2372 has changed in committee — but we still oppose it
This page preserves our original analysis of HB 2372 as filed. The bill has since been changed in a House Committee Substitute (HCS). We are keeping the original analysis below so readers can see how the bill started, while also clearly showing what changed and why our recommendation remains STRONGLY OPPOSE.
STILL STRONGLY OPPOSE
What changed?
- The bill grew broader, not narrower. The committee substitute adds more sections and confirms this is still a large omnibus healthcare package.
- The doula wording changed. The earlier “pregnant individual” language was cleaned up in the substitute and changed to “pregnant women,” with added language about promoting healthy, live births.
- But the doula structure remains and expands. The substitute still creates a major reimbursement framework for doula services and related support functions.
- Additional insurance and health-policy provisions were added. That makes the single-subject problem worse, not better.
Why we still oppose it
- It still operates as a Frankenbill. Too many different healthcare subjects are bundled under one broad title.
- The substitute did not solve the pro-life concern. While some wording was improved, the bill still builds out a new reimbursement and service infrastructure without the kind of explicit firewall we believe is needed.
- It still grows government. The bill expands state programs, mandates, and administrative structures rather than offering clean, limited, single-subject reform.
- The fiscal concerns remain. Even after changes in committee, this bill still moves Missouri toward more spending, more bureaucracy, and more long-term healthcare entanglement.
Note: The full analysis below reflects our review of the bill as originally filed. This update is provided so readers can compare the filed version with the latest committee substitute.
What Does This Bill Do?
- State-Funded Doula Program: Creates a new MO HealthNet reimbursement program for doulas using "pregnant individual" language. It lacks any "abortion firewall," meaning state tax dollars could pay for "full-spectrum doulas" who facilitate abortion access.
- Outsourcing to Globalist NGOs: Grants DHSS authority to contract with "national public health associations" (like APHA/NACCHO) that push Critical Race Theory, gender ideology, and globalist health agendas, bypassing local control.
- Bureaucratic Standing Orders: Empowers unelected state medical officers to issue statewide medical orders for "any other purpose," bypassing the physician-patient relationship and parental consent.
Constitutional or Critical Context
This bill is a "Frankenbill" that flagrantly violates the Missouri Constitution's single-subject rule (Article III, §23). By bundling 19+ unrelated subjects under the deceptive title "relating to health care," it hides controversial expansions of government power. Most critically, in the wake of Amendment 3, the lack of pro-life protections in the new doula program creates a direct pipeline for taxpayer-funded abortion support.
Red Flags & Recommended Amendments
Trojan Horse for Abortion Funding
The doula program (§208.1400) uses gender-neutral language and allows "community navigation" to "resources." Post-Amendment 3, abortion is a "resource." Without explicit prohibitions, this will fund the abortion industry.
Taxation Without Representation
Section 195.417 gives a private administrator the power to set unlimited fees on manufacturers—a hidden tax that will be passed directly to families through higher medicine prices.
Act for Missouri Recommendation:
HB 2372 violates the Missouri Constitution, betrays pro-life principles, and surrenders state sovereignty. It cannot be fixed by amendment. We urge the General Assembly to DEFEAT this bill and demand clean, single-subject legislation.