medicine
Congresswoman Mary Lou Marzian proposed a law that would require men to get permission from their wives in order to get a prescription for Viagra. iStock

A new law could make it mandatory for men in Kentucky to obtain written permission from their wives before receiving erectile dysfunction medication such as Viagra.

The proposed legislation would also require any man seeking prescription drugs to treat erectile dysfunction to visit a doctor twice before receiving the medication.

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Democratic congresswoman and retired nurse Mary Lou Marzian drew up the bill in opposition to the restrictive abortion laws in Kentucky and other US states.

House Bill 396 would only allow married men to access prescription drugs for erectile dysfunction if they are able to produce a signed and dated letter showing that they have their spouse's consent. They would also have to make a sworn statement with their hand on a bible to "only use a prescription for a drug for erectile dysfunction when having sexual relations with his current spouse."

Mary Lou Marzian
Kentucky congresswoman Mary Lou Marzian proposed the bill. YouTube/KET

Marzian explained that she proposed the legislation as she wished to illustrate "how intrusive and ridiculous it is for elected officials to be inserting themselves into private and personal medical decisions."

"As a woman and a pro-choice woman and as an elected official, I am sick and tired of men - mostly white men -legislating personal, private medical decisions," she told CNN.

"When I put this out here, I thought, you know, I will strike a nerve because what is more sacred to men than their ability to have sexual intercourse?" she commented.

Earlier this month Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin signed the 'Informed Consent Act' into law stating that medical professionals must carry out ultrasounds and display the images to patients who wish to have an abortion. In Arkansas a new law allows a man to sue his wife's doctor for damages if she has an abortion.

Abortion restrictions in the US

41 US states have abortion restrictions, banning the procedure after a certain amount of weeks. In over half of these states abortions are prohibited at around 24 to 26 weeks of pregnancy. The foetus is able to survive outside the womb after this period, according to the American Medical Association. In several states (Idaho, Alabama, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Nebraska and Oklahoma) abortions are banned after 22 weeks on the grounds that the foetus can feel pain at that point.

Nine states (Alaska, Colorado, District of Columbia, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Vermont, West Virginia) have no laws in place prohibiting abortions after a certain period of time.