Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
South Carolina Lawmakers Again Pass 'Near-Total' Abortion Ban
AP: S. Carolina House Passes Abortion Ban; No Sign Of Budging
For the second time since the U.S. Supreme Court ended federal abortion protections, the South Carolina House has passed a near-total abortion ban — and shows no sign of budging. The lower chamber’s Republican supermajority on Wednesday continued its efforts to make South Carolina the 13th state with a ban from conception. By a 83-31 vote largely along party lines, the House advanced a bill including exceptions for rape, incest, fatal fetal anomaly and the patient’s health and life. (Pollard, 2/16)
AP: Bill Raising Abortion To Homicide Draws Republican Pushback
Newly filed legislation allowing illegal abortions to be prosecuted as homicides drew a quick pushback Wednesday from the state’s anti-abortion attorney general, who warned it would wrongly subject Kentucky women to charges for terminating pregnancies. Republican state Rep. Emily Callaway raised the stakes in the state’s bitter abortion debates when she introduced the measure Tuesday in a state where most abortions are currently banned. (Schreiner, 2/15)
The New York Times: A New Goal For Abortion Bills: Punish Or Protect Doctors
For the first time since the fight over abortion access was kicked to the states after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, newly elected legislatures around the country are coming into session and are putting the polarizing issue at the top of their agendas. Around 300 bills in 40 states have been proposed so far — with a majority seeking to restrict access to abortion, and others trying to strengthen it. Most of the bills are in the early stages, and many are not likely to survive politically divided state governments to make it into law. But if there is one thing that is evident, the legislative flurry shows that both sides of the debate agree on at least one point: Doctors are the critical link — and that has made them the most vulnerable to punishment. At least three dozen bills are aimed at doctors and other medical personnel as a way to regulate abortion. (Chen, 2/16)
Stateline: As Abortion Measures Loom, GOP Raises New Barriers To Ballot Initiatives
Roused by voters’ recent endorsement of abortion rights — even in conservative states — Republican legislators are ramping up efforts to make it tougher for citizens to change laws or amend state constitutions through ballot measures. (Greenberger, 2/15)
KHN: Republican Lawmakers Shy Away From Changing Montana’s Constitutional Right To Abortion
Republican lawmakers in Montana wield a supermajority that gives them the power to ask voters to approve a constitutional amendment that would break the link between abortion rights and the right to privacy in the state’s constitution. But so far, they haven’t sought to ask voters to make the change, a rewrite that would allow lawmakers to ban or further restrict abortion after the U.S. Supreme Court gave that power back to the states last year. (Houghton, 2/16)
