SALEM, Ore. — Two bills to guarantee permanent insurance coverage for women's health unanimously passed in the House yesterday after emotional testimony from Republicans and Democrats.

The bills would require employers to provide insurance coverage for pregnancy, childbirth, mammograms, pelvic exams, Pap tests and clinical breast exams. Similar laws have been on the books since 1993, but each had a built-in expiration date, so lawmakers have had to pass the bills every six years to guarantee coverage.

"It makes no sense to have to do that," said Rep. Bill Dalto, R-Salem. "With early detection, from the screenings we are providing for in these bills, we can help prevent some of these deaths," he said of the 40,000 women across the nation who will die of breast cancer this year.

House Speaker Karen Minnis, R-Wood Village, urged passage, tearfully recalling a friend who died last year of uterine cancer.

One of the bill's sponsors, Rep. Diane Rosenbaum, D-Portland, hugged Minnis and thanked her for her support. She said the bills are crucial for women's health.