Georgia, Kentucky Lawmakers Try To Restrict Medication Abortions
A Georgia Senate bill was passed that requires a woman to see a physician in person before being given access to abortion pills, thus restricting the option to mail pills to women in need. Kentucky lawmakers also advanced efforts to restrict medication-by-mail abortions.
AP:
Georgia Senate: Require In-Person Exams For Abortion Pills
A Georgia woman would have to be examined by a physician in person and sign a consent form before she could be prescribed abortion pills under a bill passed Tuesday by the state Senate. Senate Bill 456, which passed 31-22 on a party-line vote, is part of a nationwide push by anti-abortion groups to limit the ability of physicians to prescribe abortion pills by telemedicine. It now moves to the House for more debate. (Amy, 3/1)
Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
Georgia Senate Approves Bill To Ban The Mailing Of Abortion Pills
The Georgia Senate approved on a party-line vote a bill that would ban women from receiving the abortion pill through the mail. Senators voted 31-22 to approve the measure, with Republicans supporting the measure, which now goes to the state House. Senate Bill 456, filed by state Sen. Bruce Thompson, R-White, would require pregnant women to see a doctor in person before being able to obtain mifepristone, the abortion pill. Pills could not be sent through the mail or given on state property — or at any k-12 school or college that receives state funds. A doctor would also have to perform an ultrasound before the drugs could be prescribed and schedule a follow-up visit. (Prabhu, 3/1)
AP:
House Panel Advances Bill To Regulate Medication Abortions
Kentucky lawmakers took a first step Tuesday toward putting more regulations on medication abortions, responding to the increased use of pills rather than surgery to terminate early pregnancies. A Republican-controlled House committee advanced a far-reaching abortion bill that would ban shipment of such medication by mail. It would require an in-person visit with a doctor, rather than using telehealth, before undergoing a medication abortion. (Schreiner, 3/1)
In other abortion news —
WFLA:
Florida Abortion Ban: Dads Would Have To Pay Child Support At 15 Weeks Under New Amendment
More than a dozen amendments to Florida’s proposed 15-week abortion ban were filed Tuesday in its latest visit to a Senate committee. Among the proposed legislative add-ons were a requirement to start paying child support at 15 weeks. If abortions are banned at 15 weeks of gestation, the amendment proposed in the Florida Senate by Tina Scott Polsky, D-Palm Beach, would require the father of the child to start paying child support as soon as abortions are no longer legal. (Donovan, 3/1)
News5Cleveland.com:
Ohio Clinics Sue To Bar New Abortion Bill
A lawsuit has been filed against the newest state abortion restriction and its regulation of doctors’ ability to practice medicine. The ACLU, Planned Parenthood Southwest Ohio Region and Women’s Med Dayton are asking a Hamilton County Common Pleas Court to keep the state from enforcing a law to create “onerous and unwarranted” restrictions to health care in Southwest Ohio in particular. (Tebben, 3/2)
The Hill:
Anti-Abortion Group Targets Kelly In $1 Million Arizona Ad Campaign
The Susan B. Anthony List, a conservative anti-abortion group, launched a $1 million ad buy in Arizona on Tuesday, targeting Sen. Mark Kelly (D) over his abortion rights stance ahead of November's midterms. The buy consists of two 30 second ads, titled "Show Pony" and "Too Extreme", which paint Kelly as extreme on the issue. One of the spots hits Kelly for co-sponsoring the Women's Health Protection Act, which abortion opponents have dubbed the "Abortion on Demand Until Birth Act.” (Manchester, 3/1)
KTVB.com:
Abortion Rights Protest Held At Idaho State Capitol Building
Freeing Idaho, a coalition of organizations that support reproductive freedom, held a rally outside of the Idaho State Capitol Building on Monday, Feb. 28, at 9:00 a.m. The rally was planned after legislation, modeled after the Texas abortion ban, was introduced in the Idaho Senate. The Senate was scheduled to vote on the bill today but ended up rescheduling. (3/1)
NPR:
Texas Abortion Law After 6 Months
In the days after the new Texas abortion law known as SB 8 took effect last September, Anna was planning her wedding to her fiancé, Scott. They'd set a date for this coming May — until Anna realized her period was almost two weeks late. "I just remember laughing to myself because I was like, wow, for as responsible as I think I am all the time, I had no idea that I was pregnant — and that late," says Anna. NPR is using only her first name because of the sensitivity of her story. (McCammon and Hodges, 3/1)
