Senate bill targets sending abortion medication to WV, where the procedure is illegal
A bill advancing in the Senate would make it a felony to prescribe or distribute medications used for abortion to people in West Virginia except for the narrow circumstances when the procedure is legal in the state.
The Senate Judiciary Committee referred Senate Bill 85 to the full Senate on Thursday. Senators are expected to vote on the bill next week.
With few exceptions, abortion has been illegal in West Virginia since 2022. Abortion by telehealth is also illegal in the state.
Sen. Patricia Rucker, R-Jefferson, one of the bill's sponsors, said the intent of Senate Bill 85 is to stop the flow of abortifacients into the state for the purpose of illegal abortions. The bill attempts to enforce the state's abortion ban on out-of-state entities or physicians who would send the medication to West Virginia residents.
The penalty for violating the law would be three to 10 years in prison for a person who is not a licensed medical professional. Licensed medical professionals would face the revocation of their license, according to the bill.
While the legislation is an attempt to stop out-of-state providers from breaking West Virginia law, federal courts are likely to decide the issue of enforcement, an attorney for the judiciary committee said.
Louisiana last month charged a New York doctor with a felony for allegedly sending abortion pills to a pregnant minor in the state, according to reporting by the Associated Press. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul refused to extradite the doctor to face the charges. New York has a shield law to protect abortion providers who prescribe the medication to patients in states where abortion is outlawed.
Kelly Lemon, a nurse midwife, testified that some medications labeled as abortifacients have a lot of other uses in health care. Lemon said the state's existing abortion laws have already led to some of her patients not being able to get misoprostol for managing a hemorrhage and delays in care for treating a miscarriage.
'My biggest concern with this bill is that it's going to further create barriers to how we can get these medications to people when they need it,' she said. The bill, should it become law, would cause delays in care and drive health providers out of the state, she said.
Rucker responded that the bill indicates that pharmacists filling a valid prescription issued by a licensed medical professional or a physician performing a procedure for a legitimate reason are not breaking the law.
Kristin Hawkins, president of Students for Life Action, testified that the bill would close a lot of loopholes for charging physicians and entities that send abortion medication to states where the procedure is not legal. Hawkins said there are websites where people can get abortion pills sent to them, seemingly without a doctor's review.
Emily Womeldorff, director of policy and campaigns for Planned Parenthood South Atlantic, said the bill is part of an ongoing effort to create fear and stigma around reproductive health care.
'This bill is a gross overreach of state authority,' Womeldorff said. 'It's threatening enforcement against health care providers that are located outside of the borders of West Virginia, and our government does not have jurisdiction over health care providers that provide care outside of our state borders.
Sen. Joey Garcia, D-Marion, was the only lawmaker to speak against the bill, calling it bad policy that would harm a woman's ability to get medical care.
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