As abortion restriction bills sweep many state legislatures, Nebraska and Iowa will consider outlawing abortionists from prescribing RU-486 via on-line Internet counseling sessions.
Kansas anti-abortion activists feel confident they will be able to push through laws in 2011 to further restrict the procedures.
UPDATE 1/23/11: Social issues top GOP state agendas
-- From "Neb. lawmakers expected to weigh abortion bills" by Timberly Ross, The Associated Press 1/2/11
. . . Planned Parenthood of the Heartland — which covers Nebraska, Iowa and some surrounding areas — has been offering telemedicine abortions in Iowa since 2008. Under that program, women in the early stages of pregnancy seeking an abortion-inducing drug can go to one of 15 or so clinics, where they meet with a nurse, then talk to a doctor by a secure Internet connection. The doctor has the woman's medical records and can remotely open a container and provide the drug.
State lawmakers also likely will debate abortion funding through the federal health care overhaul. State Sen. Annette Dubas, of Fullerton, said she's preparing legislation that would limit insurance coverage for the procedure.
Under the [ObamaCare] reform law passed in March, private plans in new insurance markets opening for business in 2014 could cover abortion, but payment must come from enrollees themselves, not from federal tax credits that will be offered to make premiums more affordable. An obscure part of the law allows states to restrict abortion coverage by private plans operating in new insurance markets.
So far, at least five states — Arizona, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee — have enacted laws restricting abortion coverage by those private plans, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Idaho, Kentucky, Missouri, North Dakota and Oklahoma already had bans on insurance coverage for abortion.
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From "Anti-abortion bills likely to be pushed in Kansas" posted at Kansas City Star 1/1/11
An ardent foe of abortion rights becomes governor [of Kansas] in January and Republicans will have a big majority in the state House.
Abortion rights opponents are looking to further restrict late-term procedures, increase reporting requirements for physicians and make it harder for abortion clinics to get licensed.
Gov.-elect Sam Brownbeck has said he will sign any anti-abortion legislation that reaches his desk.
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From "Abortion pills prescribed via Net targeted" by Sandhya Somashekhar, Washington Post Staff Writer 12/31/10
State legislators in Iowa and Nebraska have announced their intention to try to ban telemedicine abortions, which allow women to go to a branch clinic to consult via Internet videoconferencing with a physician located miles away. Then, with the push of a remote control, the doctor can open a drawer in the clinic that contains RU-486, known as the abortion pill.
Currently, telemedicine abortions are available only in Iowa, where more than 2,000 women have used the practice since 2008 through the state's Planned Parenthood affiliate. Previously, the organization provided abortions at half a dozen clinics, concentrated in the state's larger cities. Because of the telemedicine program, women in the first nine weeks of pregnancy can obtain abortion pills at most of the organization's 19 centers, which are scattered across the state.
Supporters say the program provides a vital service to women in the state's rural reaches, where abortions can be virtually impossible to obtain. They say the process is identical to an in-person appointment.
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From "Nebraska Bill Bans Telemed Abortions Using RU 486 Drug" by Steven Ertelt, LifeNews.com 12/28/10
Julie Schmit-Albin, executive director of Nebraska Right to Life . . . says women who get the abortion drug without an in-person exam and visit with a physician are left to deal with any consequences alone and she pointed to stories of “young girls being sent home to hemorrhage and deliver their babies at home not knowing what to expect.”
“This isn’t about women’s access to “healthcare” but more about Planned Parenthood reaching its tentacles across the vast expanse of our state into rural areas where they have not been and inflicting a dangerous drug cocktail on women and young girls who might end up in their local emergency rooms hours away from the abortionist who started the abortion,” she said.
She said women visiting Planned Parenthood for the telemed abortions “are told by Planned Parenthood to act like they are having a miscarriage if they go into an ER after having problems at home. So the local ER doctor doesn’t even know that her problem is due to a chemical abortion.”
“How is this about improving women’s health?” Schmit-Albin asked. “It’s all about the bottom line for Planned Parenthood: money.”
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Click headlines below to read previous articles:
On-line Abortions by Planned Parenthood Going Nation
Iowans Energized Against Abortion
Abortion Limits Nationwide? Nebraska's New Fetal Pain Law
Abortionists 'On the Ropes' in Courts
Media Focus on States' New Abortion Restrictions
States' Abortion Laws Reflect Growing Public Abhorrence
Abortionists Furious SC Governor Signed Legislation
