
Culture & Conversation Abortion
This law was last updated on May 1, 2017
This law is Anti–Choice
S 178
Failed to Pass
Jan 27, 2015
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Total Sponsors: 1
S 178 would prohibit abortions from being performed or induced without the voluntary and informed consent, including forced ultrasound, of the woman upon whom the abortion is to be performed or induced.
Informed Consent Requirements
Under S 178, an abortion could not be performed or induced without the voluntary and informed consent of the pregnant woman. An abortion would only be considered voluntary and informed if:
Printed Materials
S 178 would require that printed informational materials be provided to the woman seeking an abortion. The materials would include information on private and public agencies available to assist the woman, adoption agencies, materials that inform the pregnant woman the probable anatomical and physiological characteristics of the fetus and any relevant information on the possibility of the fetus’s survival.
Ultrasound
Prior to a pregnant woman giving informed consent, a physician would be required to perform an obstetric ultrasound on the pregnant woman. The physician would need to verbally explain what the ultrasound is depicting while displaying the images so that the woman may view them (although she may avert her eyes). The physician would also be required to provide a medical description of the images including the dimensions of the embryo or fetus and the presence of external members and internal organs, if present and viewable. The physician would need to obtain and retain a copy of a written certification from the woman that all requirements have been met.
If the pregnancy is at least 8 weeks after fertilization, the abortion provider who is to perform or induce the abortion, a certified technician, or another agent of the abortion provider would need to use a hand-held doppler fetal monitor to make the embryonic or fetal heartbeat of the fetus audible for the pregnant woman to hear. The woman would not be prohibited from not listening to the sounds.
Internet Website
The Health Department would be required to maintain a website, accessible to the public, containing informational materials relating to the informed consent requirements.
If an abortion provider has a website, the abortion provider’s internet website home page would need to provide two direct links to the Department’s Informed consent materials.
Reporting Requirements
Reporting forms for physicians would need to include:
By June 30th of each year, the Department would be required to issue a public report providing statistics compiled from all the reports submitted from the previous year.
Any person who knowingly or intentionally violates any of the requirements would be guilty of a felony. Any physician who knowingly submits a false report would be guilty of a misdemeanor.
STATUS
Similar to A 3252 and S 4996, both of which failed to pass the previous session.
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