Howell Seeks Gender Equity in Ultrasound Bill

To protest a bill that would require women to undergo an ultrasound before having an abortion, Virginia State Sen. Janet Howell (D-Reston) on Monday attached an amendment that would require men to have a rectal exam and a cardiac stress test before obtaining a prescription for erectile dysfunction medication.

"We need some gender equity here," she told HuffPost. "The Virginia senate is about to pass a bill that will require a woman to have totally unnecessary medical procedure at their cost and inconvenience. If we're going to do that to women, why not do that to men?"

The Senate will formally vote on the mandatory ultrasound bill on Tuesday.

The Republican-controlled senate  rejected the amendment Monday by a vote of 21 to 19, but passed the mandatory ultrasound bill in a voice vote. 

Howell said she is not surprised her amendment failed.

"This is more of a message type of an amendment, so I was pleased to get 19 votes," she said.