A bill that would ban all abortion inducing drugs in Indiana is being reviewed at the Statehouse.
If it becomes law, the ban would be on all “abortion inducing drugs” in the state, even if an abortion would otherwise by exceptions to the state’s already passed near-total abortion ban.
The key provisions of the bill are as follows:
-A ban on all abortion inducing drugs. There are no exceptions to this ban for rape, incest or preserving the life of a mother.
-Makes it a crime to possess or prescribe an abortion inducing drug in Indiana. This starts out as a misdemeanor but elevates to a felony if there is a prior conviction of this same crime.
-If a woman seeks an abortion under the rape or incest exceptions to Indiana’s abortion ban, she must provide a signed affidavit to a doctor. The bill says that if the woman lies in this affidavit, she can be prosecuted for perjury.
-Makes it illegal for Indiana nonprofits to help with the costs of an abortion inducing drug.
-Lets the Attorney General prosecute a case based on this law, even if a local prosecutor refused to.
-Bans insurance plans in Indiana from covering the costs of abortion inducing drugs. There is no exception if those drugs are acquired and/or administered out of state.
“This is a government intrusion into medicine and healthcare with no other purpose but to extreme ideology into law and take medical options away from patients,” Indianapolis OB-GYN Caitlin Bernard said to the Indiana Capitol Chronicle. “This will lead to women dying in our state, something that we should all be fighting to prevent.”
The bill does allow someone to transport abortion inducing drugs through Indiana, but they are not allowed to give the drugs to anyone within the state.
The legislation has been referred to the Senate Health and Provider Services Committee.