Tennessee, West Virginia Legislatures Consider Updates To Abortion Trigger Laws
With West Virginia's 19th century law on judicial hold, Republican state House members advance an updated bill banning abortion, except in cases of miscarriage or stillbirth. Tennessee's trigger law is still pending, but in the meantime, abortion rights advocates urge lawmakers to add exceptions for victims of rape or incest.
Mountain State Spotlight:
Here’s What’s In West Virginia’s New Abortion Ban Bill
Since the Supreme Court’s ruling, West Virginia’s abortion law has reverted to one that’s been on the books since the 19th century and bans the medical procedure entirely. Advocates on both sides of the issue have said lawmaker action to modernize the law is necessary; a circuit judge halted its implementation last week, citing its vague language, but West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey is appealing the case to the state Supreme Court. Despite many lawmakers claiming surprise at the last-minute nature of Justice’s announcement, within hours they had a draft bill before the House Health and Human Resources Committee. The bill proposed on Monday is a strict ban, though it appears to correct some of the mistakes of similar laws in other states that have come under fire for penalizing women or doctors for certain medically necessary procedures. (Karbal, 7/25)
AP:
Lawmakers Eye Exemptions To Tennessee's Trigger Law
Tennessee’s attorney general’s office on Monday said it’s still unknown when the state’s anti-abortion “trigger ban” will go into effect, but some state lawmakers are raising alarm that the ban has no exceptions for victims of rape or incest. (Kruesi, 7/25)
AP:
Lawsuit Seeks To Block Wyoming's Imminent Abortion Ban
A lawsuit filed Monday by a Casper women’s health clinic and others seeks to block Wyoming’s new abortion ban just before it’s scheduled to take effect. The lawsuit claims the new law violates the state constitution with restrictions that will discourage potentially lifesaving pregnancy healthcare in Wyoming, forcing pregnant women to go to other states for necessary procedures. (Gruver, 7/25)
AP:
Kansas AG Tries To Tamp Down Fears About Abortion Measure
Attorney General Derek Schmidt, a Republican running for governor who supports the measure, argues in a legal opinion issued Friday that treating miscarriages, removing dead fetuses and ending ectopic pregnancies do not fall under Kansas’ legal definition of abortion. The proposal on the ballot Aug. 2 would amend the Kansas Constitution to allow the Legislature to further restrict or ban abortion. It’s the first referendum on abortion policy by a state since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last month. (Hanna, 7/25)
NPR:
How Texas Abortion Law Turned A Pregnancy Loss Into A Medical Trauma
New, untested abortion bans have made doctors unsure about treating some pregnancy complications, which has led to life-threatening delays and trapped families in a limbo of grief and helplessness. Elizabeth Weller never dreamed that her own hopes for a child would become ensnared in the web of Texas abortion law. (Feibel, 7/26)
NPR:
Hundreds Of Michigan Medical Students Walk Out Over Anti-Abortion Speaker
On Sunday night at the University of Michigan Medical School's annual white coat ceremony, incoming medical students recited oaths, received their white coats – then dozens of them walked out. At issue was the keynote speaker: Dr. Kristin Collier, a Michigan faculty member and primary care physician who has spoken publicly about her Christian beliefs and anti-abortion views. (Sullivan, 7/26)
Los Angeles Times:
UC And CSU Campuses To Provide Abortion Pills In California
Abortion pills will soon be easily and cheaply available to students at the University of California and California State University under a state law aimed at expanding access to the medication to college students, a move that could become a flashpoint for antiabortion groups vowing to challenge it. (Hernandez, 7/25)
The Boston Globe:
Mass. House, Senate Agree On Compromise To Change Later-Term Abortion Law; Baker Likely To Have Final Say
A key point of tension that divided the Democratic-controlled House and Senate was the circumstances under which abortions at or after 24 weeks of pregnancy should be allowed. The compromise bill, expected to pass both branches and be sent to Governor Charlie Baker in coming days, allows for later-term abortions in the case of a “a lethal fetal anomaly or diagnosis . . . or grave fetal diagnosis that indicates that the fetus is incompatible with sustained life outside of the uterus without extraordinary medical interventions,” according to the bill’s language. (Gross, 7/25)
