Bill Tracker

HB 310 Abortion Penalty Amendments

Sponsor: Rep. Angela Romero

Overview:

This bill revises the criminal charges and penalties for medical providers who violate Utah's abortion restrictions. It replaces criminal charges with civil penalties and de-links the imposition of civil penalties with referral to the state's professional licensing board.

Fact Sheet: Forthcoming

Position: We support HB 310

Status: Did not pass / Never assigned a committee hearing

Location: House Rules Committee

S.B. 133 - Modifications Medicaid Coverage

Sponsor: Sen. Wayne Harper (R) 

Overview:
SB 133 would extend post-partum Medicaid coverage from 60 days to 1 year and expand family planning services to people earning up to 185% of the federal poverty level (less than $55,000 for a family of four). While the current version of SB 133 includes language that blocks postpartum coverage for people whose pregnancies end with an abortion, a fallback provision will remove that language if CMS does not approve the waiver by January 1, 2024.

Position: We support SB 133

Fact sheets: 

SB 133 Fact Sheet (Utah Health Policy Project
SB 133 Fact Sheet on postpartum coverage from ASCENT Center

SB 133 Fact Sheet on family planning coverage from ASCENT Center

Status: Passed the Utah Legislature on 3/2/23; awaiting consideration from Gov. Cox.

Location: Consideration by Gov. Cox.

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Postpartum Coverage Facts

• Currently, pregnancy-related Medicaid coverage in Utah lasts only 60 days after birth. However, research shows that women experience pregnancy related health complications up to a year postpartum. According to Utah Perinatal Maternal Mortality Review, 65% of Utah’s pregnancy-related deaths happen between 43 and 365 days postpartum.
• Extending this coverage will give an additional 10 months of coverage to 2,550 mothers according to estimates from the Utah Department of Health and Human Services. 
• Already, 26 states including North Carolina, Florida, and Ohio have implemented a 12-month extension of coverage for new mothers. Eight more states are planning an extension, including Colorado, Arizona, and Georgia.
• This bill is also about equity. According to the Utah Department of Health and Human Services, Black and American Indian/Alaska Native women are up to five times more likely to die from pregnancy-related complications and are more likely to have a preventable death.

Family Planning Facts

• In 2021, Medicaid financed 20.9% of all births in Utah (approximately 10,000 deliveries), costing an average of $13,000 per birth;
• Public funding for family planning has a return-on-investment (ROI) of $7 for every public dollar spent – as high or higher than ROIs for investments in economic development and early childhood education;

 

• By reducing thousands of unintended pregnancies, miscarriages, and abortions, expanding family planning coverage is estimated to save Utah taxpayers $12.7 million in healthcare costs per year;
• Public funding for family planning has a return-on-investment (ROI) of $7 for every public dollar spent – as high or higher than ROIs for investments in economic development and early childhood education;
• More than two dozen states have secured similar federal approval for family planning waivers, including Florida, Georgia, Wisconsin and South Carolina;
• Existing waivers reduced unintended or mistimed births and proved budget neutral or created cost-savings in other states

Access to birth control allows people to plan their lives and achieve their dreams.

• The importance of affordable birth control access can’t be overstated: Many of the gains women have made since 1965 — in obtaining education, pursuing careers in increasing numbers, and moving closer to pay equity, and in the timing and spacing of children — are the direct result of increased access to birth control
• Access to family planning leads to increased postsecondary education and employment; increased earnings; more enduring marriages; fewer people needing Medicaid services later; avoidance of intergenerational poverty;
• 80% of Utahns support public funding for family planning services for low-income families;

HB 79 - Family Planning Services Revisions

Sponsor: Rep. Ray Ward

Overview: 
HB 79 directs Utah’s Medicaid program to apply for an automatic, pre-approved state plan amendment with a 90:10 federal/state funding match that extends family plannings services to individuals who:

• Earn an income below 250% FPL (less than $69,375 for a family of four);
• Do not qualify for traditional Medicaid;
• HB 79 does not cover any abortion services.

Fact Sheet for HB 79 (PDF)

Position: We support HB 79 - Family Planning Services Revisions

Status: Family Planning coverage added to SB 133, which passed the Utah Legislature on 3/2/23

Location: House Rules Committee/Bills that did not pass

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HB 79 By the Numbers:

• In 2021, Medicaid financed 20.9% of all births in Utah (approximately 10,000 deliveries), costing an average of $13,000 per birth;
• HB 79’s fiscal note estimates the bill’s ongoing cost to Utah’s General Fund is $815,100 per year, or $75 per person per year if the estimated 11,000 individuals receive coverage;
• By reducing thousands of unintended pregnancies, miscarriages, and abortions, expanding family planning coverage is estimated to save Utah taxpayers $12.7 million in healthcare costs per year;
• Public funding for family planning has a return-on-investment (ROI) of $7 for every public dollar spent – as high or higher than ROIs for investments in economic development and early childhood education;
• More than two dozen states have secured similar federal approval for family planning waivers, including Florida, Georgia, Wisconsin and South Carolina;
• Existing waivers reduced unintended or mistimed births and proved budget neutral or created cost-savings in other states

Access to birth control allows people to plan their lives and achieve their dreams.

• The importance of affordable birth control access can’t be overstated: Many of the gains women have made since 1965 — in obtaining education, pursuing careers in increasing numbers, and moving closer to pay equity, and in the timing and spacing of children — are the direct result of increased access to birth control
• Access to family planning leads to increased postsecondary education and employment; increased earnings; more enduring marriages; fewer people needing Medicaid services later; avoidance of intergenerational poverty;
• 80% of Utahns support public funding for family planning services for low-income families;

HB 141 - Driver License Test Amendments

Sponsor: Rep. Gay Lynn Bennion

Overview: 

HB 141 would:

• Allows a person to take class D driver license (regular adult driver license) exam in the individual's preferred language, subject to availability, for the initial application and first renewal application;
• If the Utah Driver’s License Division is unable to administer the exam in a requested language, and individual may use a translator approved by the division and paid for by themselves;
• Any individual who has taken the initial and first renewal driver’s license exam in a language other than English must take the second renewal exam in English;
• Require a report from the Driver License Division on the number of exams taken in languages other than English to the Transportation Interim Committee

Fact Sheet: HB 141 Fact Sheet

Position: We support HB 141

Status: Passed both chambers and awaiting consideration and signature by Gov. Cox

Location: Governor's consideration

Background:

In many parts of Utah, obtaining a valid driver's license is practically essential for holding a job, going to school, or accessing healthcare.

Plus, passing the Utah's driver license test is not easy. With 30 questions, Utah’s written driver's license test is three times as long as the typical U.S. Citizenship test.

Last year, the Utah Legislature passed SB 216 (Sen. Luz Escamilla, D-Salt Lake) that requires the state’s Driver License Division to provide tests in the top five languages spoken in the state other than English. As a result, the test is now available in Spanish, Tongan, Vietnamese, Mandarin Chinese, and Portuguese. Over 800 Utahns have taken the exam in one of these languages, with Spanish and Mandarin Chinese being the most requested.

Talking Points:

• HB 141 builds on language access advanced by SB 216 last year. It allows an individual to complete the driver license initial test and first renewal application in their preferred language (subject to availability) or allows an approved translator to be present.
• About 15% of Utah residents older than age 5 speak a language other than English at home. Approximately one-third of this population speaks English “less than very well.”
• Almost 300,000 Utahns speak Spanish (10.26% of the state population) 16,000 speak Chinese Mandarin (0.56%), and 13,000 speak Samoan or other Austronesian languages (0.45%)
• Utah is becoming an increasingly diverse state: The University of Utah’s Kem Gardner Institute estimates Utah’s minority population will increase from approximately 20% in 2015 to 35% in 2065.
• HB 141 has already passed the House and a Senate committee. It needs one more vote on the Senate floor and it will become law after the governor signs it.
• We know from the results of SB 216 that Utahns will take advantage of language resources when they are applying for a driver's license.
• This bill will provide many benefits to society, from more licensed and insured drivers on the road, to better access to driver licenses in underserved and immigrant communities.
• Expanding access to driver’s license will enable more Utahns to seek employment, attend school, and get to their health care appointments.

HB 163 - Protecting Student Religious and Moral Beliefs Regarding Athletic Uniform Requirements

Sponsor: Rep. Candice Pierucci (R-Herriman)

Overview: 

HB 163 would:

• Require schools and athletic associations that require a specific uniform to allow student athletes to wear “religious clothing with the athletic uniform; or [wear] clothing under, or with, but not substantially covering, the athletic uniform” while participating in an athletic activity;
• Allows students to wear clothing to “cover or conceal parts of the student's body that are not covered or concealed by the athletic uniform,”
• Explains that the clothing can be worn “under, or with, but not substantially covering, the athletic uniform;”
• Requires associations and educational organizations to provide the accommodating clothing if uniforms must be a certain material, style, or color;

Fact Sheet: HB 163 Fact Sheet

Position: We support HB 163

Status: Passed both chambers and sent to Gov. Cox for consideration and signature

Location: Governor's consideration

Background:

In 2022, the Utah Legislature passed HCR 16, a concurrent resolution to encourage Utah schools and athletic associations to allow youth to wear religious clothing or headwear to accommodate their religious beliefs or personal values of modesty.

After realizing this non-binding resolution wasn’t enough, Rep. Pierucci is sponsoring HB 163 to move the enforcement needle from “encourage” to “require.” If HB 161 becomes law, schools and educational institutions will be required to accommodate religious and modest clothing for youth sport activities.

To support her bill, Rep. Pierucci cites a story about two young men who were told by a referee to remove their turbans, an integral aspect of their Sikh religion, before playing a basketball game. After threatening them with a forfeit, the referee allowed the young men to play after several bystanders explained the significance of their headwear,. The two young players were upset by their treatment. According to a FOX13 report, “Harkirath [Sing Makhar] said the incident bothered them as they continued to play. He said in the more than 10 years he's been playing basketball, it has never happened before. "It kind of disrupted our game," he said.

Talking Points:

• Youth athletes should not be required to choose between following their religious and moral beliefs and playing sports. Simple accommodations can be made to uniforms and clothing that do not disrupt the game or effectiveness of a uniform.
• HB 161 has support from Utah’s diverse religious community. During the February 6 hearing at the House Education Committee, the Utah Muslim Civic League organized six people to testify in favor of HB161 who represented high school students, PTA members, school district officials, and members of various faith groups including the Muslim, Sikh, Jewish community.
• Other states like Illinois and Ohio have adjusted school sports rules to ensure that young athletes can wear faith-related garb as they compete.

H.B. 334 - Health Education Amendments 

Sponsor: Rep. Carol Spackman Moss (D- Cottonwood Heights)

Overview: 

HB 334 would:

• Require the State Board of Education to establish curriculum requirements that include instruction in sexual assault resource strategies and sexual violence behavior prevention.
• Require the board to develop curriculum requirements to explain the legal implications of electronically distributing sexually explicit images.
• Requires students to receive “age-appropriate” instruction on these topics for at least two occasions between grades 7 and 12.
• Amend provisions related to when a student receives health education instruction. 
• Requires a local education agency (i.e., school district) to review county-level data on sexual assaults to inform policies on health education.

Fact Sheet: Fact sheet for HB 334

Position: We support HB 334.

Status: Held in House Education Committee on 2/14/23

Location: House Education Committee

Background:

• This is Rep. Moss’s third attempt to pass a similar bill. In 2021, this bill failed to advance from its first committee hearing until Rep. Moss removed a section on education in “consent” from the text. It later failed on the House floor in a 31-39 vote  In 2022, a similar bill (HB 274) passed through the Utah House on a 43-25 vote, but failed 10-18 in the Senate after multiple senators switched their votes.
• In 2022, the similar HB 274 received the backing of the League of Women Voters, Utah PTA, Prevent Child Abuse Utah, UEA, Utah State Superintendents Association, and the Utah State School Boards Association.

Talking Points:

• Rep. Moss explained the purpose of her bill is to ensure that Utah students are informed about sexual abuse, grooming, and sexual violence. “I know what teens want and that is knowledge, information,” she told ABC4 in 2022. “The purpose of the bill is to teach kids that these things happen, not to make it happen, it’s to make them understand.”
• According to the Utah Department of Health, 1 in 3 women in Utah will experience sexual violence in their lifetime, 1 in 6 women in Utah will experience rape or attempted rape in their lifetime, and 1 in 25 men in Utah will experience rape or attempted rape in their lifetime.
• According to 2020 statewide polling, 65% of Utahns support medically-accurate sex education curriculum in Utah schools, with 51% favoring “Comprehensive sex education” and 14% favoring “Preventative sex education”. Support for medically accurate sex education is driven by Utah’s unaffiliated and Democratic voters (75% and 93%, respectively), with 43% of Republicans in support.
• An overwhelming majority of Utahns believe it is important to cover a wide variety of topics in sex education curriculum. Including sexually transmitted diseases/infections (96%), HIV/AIDS (95%), healthy relationships (95%), consent (91%) and birth control (91%)

S.B. 192 - Medicaid Doula Services

Sponsor: Sen. Luz Escamilla (D- Salt Lake)

Overview: 

SB 192 would:

• Require the Utah Department of Health and Human Services to consult with individuals representing patients, doulas, physicians, nurses, and health care facilities to develop a Medicaid state plan amendment for adding doula coverage.
• Require the Medicaid state plan amendment for doula coverage to include both prenatal and postpartum care.

Fact Sheet: Fact Sheet for SB 192

Position: We support SB 192.

Status: Passed Senate Health and Human Services Committee on a 6-0 vote, 2/10/23

Location: Senate Floor

Background:
A doula is a trained professional who provides continuous physical, emotional and informational support to their client before, during and shortly after childbirth. Doulas are typically not medical trained but can have medical experience. Doulas work alongside healthcare providers in medical settings and also in their client’s home. 

Doulas can provide care during prenatal period, during labor and childbirth, and postpartum during the weeks after birth.

According to the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families, six states (Oregon, Minnesota, New Jersey, Florida, Maryland, and now Virginia) currently reimburse for doula services in Medicaid. In addition, six other states (California, Washington D.C., Illinois, Indiana, Nevada, & Rhode Island) plan to get CMS approval to implement doula coverage in Medicaid by 2023.

Medicaid state plan amendments can be designed to cover doula care as “preventive services” to make it easier to reimburse non-medical providers, including doulas, for services that are recommended by a licensed provider.

Talking Points:

• Studies show that people who work with a doula during pregnancy and childbirth are less likely to deliver a pre-term or a low birthweight baby, less likely to have postpartum depression, and more likely to try breastfeeding.
• Medicaid covers 20% of all births in Utah.
• S.B. 192 passed the Senate Health and Human Services committee in a 6-0 vote.
• We support S.B. 192 because people who receive Medicaid for their pregnancy should have access to doula care to reduce complications for Medicaid pregnancies and births.

Resources:

Doula Services in Medicaid: State Progress in 2022, Georgetown University Center for Children and Families, June 2022.

Doula Care and Maternal Health: An Evidence Review, ASPE Issue Brief, December 2022

S.B. 192 - Medicaid Doula Services

Sponsor: Sen. Luz Escamilla (D)

Overview: 
This bill adds doula coverage to the list of maternity coverage allowed by the state Medicaid program. The fiscal note for this bill is small, at $80,000 in General Funds. 

Fact Sheet:  Forthcoming 

Position: We support S.B. 192

Status: Did not pass - failed in the Utah House on 3/1/23 in a 18-51-6 vote.

Location: House Rules Committee/Bills that did not pass

Additional Info: Another bill extending doula coverage is H.B. 415 from Rep. Ashlee Matthews, which adds doula coverage and birth center access to the state employee health plan.

H.B. 415 - Maternal Coverage Amendments

Sponsor: Rep. Ashlee Matthews (D)

Overview: 
This billl would add doula services, plus coverage for a direct-entry midwife care and access to free-standing birth centers, to the public employee health insurance program (PEHP).

Fact Sheet: Forthcoming

Position: We support H.B. 415 

Status: Passed the Utah Legislature on 3/1 and awaiting consideration by Gov. Cox

Location: Consideration by Gov. Cox

Additional Info: The fiscal note for H.B. 415 estimates the state will save money if it passes by providing access to lower-cost birthing centers. In addition, another bill extending doula coverage, S.B.192 from Sen. Luz Escamilla, is also being considered by the Legislature in 2023.

 HJR 2 - Joint Resolution Amending Rules of Civil Procedure on Injunctions

Sponsor: Rep. Brady Brammer

Overview:

This joint resolution revises a rule that Utah courts apply when deciding whether to temporarily block the enforcement of a law while a legal challenge over constitutionality proceeds. The resolution would narrow the grounds for granting these emergency orders, which are sometimes called temporary restraining orders or preliminary injunctions.  A substitute version of HJR2 approved by the House Judiciary Committee on 1/18/23 allows parties restrained by an injunction (like the state of Utah in the trigger ban lawsuit) to file a "motion to reconsider" to force the court to address whether the injunction is still valid under the new rules created by HJR2.

A Senate amendment to HJR 2 narrowed the possibility of reconsideration to only injunctions against state statutes, which would include the abortion trigger ban and the transgender youth sports ban. This change further demonstrates that the Legislature is targeting these specific court cases, and other future challenges to legislative action, in an effort to limit Utahns’ ability to access justice and protect our rights from government overreach.

HJR 02 transparently targets the court order placing SB 174, Utah's abortion trigger ban, on hold. Resolutions to amend Utah’s court rules require a two-thirds majority vote in both chambers, take effect immediately upon passage, and do not require the Governor’s signature.

Fact Sheet: Planned Parenthood Fact Sheet on HJR 02

Handout: Handout: Eight Facts about HJR2

Position: We oppose HJR 02

Status: Passed both chambers with 2/3 majorities. Takes effect immediately as of 2/14/23.

Location: Senate President for signing.

Media Quote:

"This resolution would toss out decade-old procedural rules to make it more difficult for courts to protect the rights of Utahns against government overreach in emergency situations, no matter how much the government harms Utah families.

"The Legislature is tilting the scales of justice toward the government and away from the Utahns across the state they are purported to protect. Instead of wreaking havoc with Utah's courts, the Legislature should do its job and focus on providing more stability and security to Utah families."

>> Attributed to Karrie Galloway, CEO and President of Planned Parenthood Association of Utah

 HB 297 - Victim Services Amendments

Sponsor: Rep. Kera Birkeland

Overview:

Among other provisions, HB 297 requires victims of rape to initiate and confirm an active law enforcement investigation for their sexual assault in order to qualify for an abortion under current state law. This bill also restricts the time period that victims of sexual assault may access emergency contraception in a medical setting.

Fact sheet: HB 297 Fact Sheet

Position:

We oppose HB 297 because of its unnecessary and harmful reporting requirements and health care restrictions on people who are in the midst of trauma. Not only does HB 297 go against best practices for trauma-informed care for victims of rape, but it also restricts their rights and violates their privacy. HB 297 limits the control that victims of sexual assault have of their bodies at the exact time they should be given more agency, not less, over their personal health decisions. In addition, many of the proposed victim services and support elements in HB 297 are already established in current Utah law, codes, and procedures.

Status: Passed the Utah Legislature on 3/2/23; awaiting consideration from Gov. Cox.

Location: Consideration by Gov. Cox.

Media Quote:
"While this bill purports to protect survivors of sexual assault, it will actually do the opposite and discourage them from getting the care they may need. Requiring a police report to receive an abortion is not trauma informed, not supported by evidence, and could result in retraumatizing survivors. It could also result in immediate safety risks. This bill burdens survivors of sexual assault with unnecessary and harmful restrictions on their personal autonomy and privacy. The current amendments do not sufficiently alleviate those harms."

> Karrie Galloway, CEO and Executive Director of Planned Parenthood Association of Utah

SB 16 - Transgender Medical Treatments and Procedures Amendments

Sponsor: Sen. Michael Kennedy

Overview:

The final version of this bill (4th Sub.) does the following:

• Creates a moratorium on future access to hormone treatment for new minor patients after the effective date of the bill
• Asks the Utah Department of Health and Human Services to commission study looking at the benefits and harms of hormone treatment for transgender youth.
• Prevents medical providers from providing hormonal transgender treatment to minor patients who were not diagnosed with gender dysphoria before the effective date of the bill
• Creates new requirements for providers of existing minor patients, including training, expansion of statue of limitations, etc.
• Bans surgical procedures for transgender youth if sought as gender-affirming care.
• Expands medical malpractice claims against providers who provided  treatment provided to the individual as a minor if the individual later disaffirms consent

Fact sheet: Forthcoming

Position: We oppose this bill.

Status: Signed by Gov. Cox on Jan. 29, 2023. Bill is now law in Utah.

HB 467 - Abortion Changes 

Sponsor: Rep. Karianne Lisonbee  (R)

Overview: 

HB 467 would:

• Prohibit licensing for abortion clinics after May 2, 2023;
• Prohibit abortion clinics from operating in Utah after December 31, 2023, or the last effective date of a license issued before May 2, 2023—whichever is later.
• Mandate all abortion services take place in hospital, defined as a general hospital licensed by the state;
• Require Utah to deny or revoke the license of any medical facility that provides an abortion in violation of the abortion bans currently in statute;
• Allows abortions defined as exceptions under the SB 174 “trigger ban” (76-7a-201)  to be performed at a ”clinic or other medical facility” certified by the Utah Department of Health and Human Services as providing the “same degree of safety to the pregnant woman and the unborn child” as a general hospital as long as the providers doing the procedures are credentialed to perform the same procedures at a licensed general hospital;
• Creates a criminal offense for prescribing medication to cause an abortion unless the prescriber is licensed as a physician in Utah. Current law requires a physician to perform or induce an abortion, but this adds additional criminal penalties;
• Restricts the abortion exceptions in the “trigger ban” (SB 174) to apply only where the pregnant person is experiencing a “life threatening physical condition” that threatens the patient’s life or risks “substantial impairment of a major bodily function.” Current law does not explicitly require that the emergency condition be only physical;
• Revises abortion exceptions for fetal anomalies defined by the “trigger ban” (SB 174) to conditions “incompatible with life” attested in the medical record by two maternal fetal medicine physicians;
• Add a new penalty for Utah medical providers in Utah conducting an abortion contrary to statutory requirements;
• Restricts abortion access for survivors of rape or incest to before 18 weeks gestation under the state’s current 18-week abortion ban and the “trigger ban”;
• Requires providers to explain both verbally and in writing that perinatal hospice and palliative care options available as alternatives to abortion. Note: A previous requirement that abortionsto be performed via induction of labor instead of in utero was removed in the 1st substitute.
• Modifies and moves existing language on Utah’s 18-week abortion ban;
• Amends the “trigger ban” to include exceptions for young people under 15 years of age and for survivors of rape or incest, but limited only to 18 weeks gestation;
• Further amends the “trigger ban” to institute new reporting requirements for survivors of rape or incest and for young people over 14 years old to require a provider to report the assault to law enforcement and, if applicable, to report neglect or abuse of a minor for patients under age 14.

Fact Sheet: HB 467 Fact Sheet

Talking Points: HB 467 Talking Points 

Position: We oppose HB 467.

Status: Passed the Utah Legislature on 3/3/23; awaiting consideration from Gov. Cox.

Location: Consideration by Gov. Cox.

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Talking Points:

Toplines

• This bill would prohibit the Utah Department of Health and Human Services from granting or renewing a license for an abortion clinic in Utah after May 2, 2023.
• There is simply no justification for this bill – it is based wholly on bias against abortion providers and designed to put abortion out of reach for Utahns seeking care.
  • Abortion is a critical component of reproductive health care and a safe procedure with a low risk of complications—there is simply no reason to prevent health care providers from offering abortion services in licensed reproductive health clinics, as they do right now.
  • Abortion is exceptionally safe. Hospital requirements are unnecessary and make it more difficult and more costly for pregnant people to get the care they need.
• Despite what the proponents of this bill may say, their primary aim is to close down abortion clinics in this state and put abortion out of reach for as many Utahns as possible.
• Abortion clinics, like Planned Parenthood, are critical providers of reproductive health care in this state. Planned Parenthood and other clinics like us serve an important role in our communities, offering safe, accessible, unbiased, and non-judgmental services to those who need them.
• This bill would make it impossible to maintain an abortion clinic in this state after May of 2024, and it does so for no reason other than anti-abortion animus.
  • Forcing abortion clinics to close would not only limit access to abortion care, but to a host of other types of reproductive health care, including access to contraception.
• But this bill doesn’t stop there. It also creates a host of other obstacles to care for Utahns. For example it would:
  • Institute additional reporting and monitoring of health care providers that report that they provide abortions in Utah;
  • Limit access to abortion for pregnant people under 12 years old and for survivors of rape and incest; and
  • Requires providers to verify that survivors have made reports to law enforcement before accessing care.

Talking points re: importance of abortion access for communities

• Abortion access is a public health imperative. When abortion is illegal or inaccessible, women and their families suffer severe consequences. If HB 467 becomes law, it will harm individual Utahns and our communities by putting abortion and other reproductive health care further out of reach and, for some people, limiting access altogether.
  • Laws that arbitrarily ban abortion past a certain number of weeks of pregnancy result in delayed or denied care.
  • A study published in January 2020 by the National Bureau of Economic Research found that when a woman is unable to secure an abortion she needs, it quadruples the odds of the new mother and her child living in poverty going forward.^[1]
  • Patients who are unable to access a wanted abortion are more likely to receive public assistance and lack full-time employment six months after being turned away.^[2] These economic consequences impact individuals, their families, and their communities for years to come.
  • Furthermore, states with laws impeding access to abortion or limiting the number of abortion clinics have a decreased likelihood of transitioning from unemployment to employment for both women and men.^[3]

 

Talking points re: support for abortion access from medical community

• This bill runs contrary to guidance from the nation’s leading medical organizations.
  • In July 2022, in direct response to the Supreme Court’s decision overturning Roe v. Wade, over 75 health care organizations, including the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Family Physicians, American Academy of Nursing, American Academy of Pediatrics, The American Board of Internal Medicine, and the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine, issued a statement condemning “all legislative interference in the patient–clinician relationship.”
    • The collection of expert groups stated that “Our patients need to be able to access—and our clinicians need to be able to provide—the evidence-based care that is right for them, including abortion, without arbitrary limitations, without threats, and without harm.”^[4]
    • This statement from over 75 of the nation’s premier medical organizations and associations recognized that abortion bans “impair the integrity of the medical profession” and “have a devastating and unquantifiable impact on the patients and clinicians.”^[5]
    • The statement was unequivocal about the fact that banning abortion harms patients.^[6]
  • The American Medical Association recently reaffirmed the importance of access to reproductive health services, including abortion, without fear of criminal or civil liability.^[7]
  • The American Psychological Association has repeatedly affirmed their long-standing position that access to comprehensive reproductive care without fear of criminalization is vital for psychological and mental health.^[8]

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^[1] Miller, Sarah, et al. The Economic Consequences of Being Denied an Abortion, NBER Working Paper, No. 26662 (January 2020), https://www.nber.org/papers/w26662.

^[2] Diane Greene Foster, et al., Socioeconomic Outcomes of Women Who Receive and Women Who are Denied Wanted Abortions in the United States, 108 Am. J. Public Health 407 (2018).

^[3] Kate Bahn et al., Linking Reproductive Health Care Access to Labor Market Opportunities for Women, Ctr. for Amer. Progress (Nov. 21, 2017, 9:01 AM), https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/women/reports/2017/11/21/442653/linking-reproductive-health-care-access-labor-market-opportunities-women/.

^[4] Id.

^[5] Id.

^[6] Id.

^[7] Am. Med. Ass’n, Resolution 28: Preserving Access to Reproductive Health Services (adopted June 13, 2022), https://www.ama-assn.org/system/files/a22-refcomm-conby-report.pdf.

^[8] APA Resolution Affirming and Building on APA’s History of Support for Reproductive Rights, Am. Psych. Ass’n (Feb. 2022), https://www.apa.org/about/policy/resolution-reproductive-rights.pdf.

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Media Quote: 

“By restricting where, how and when Utahns can access essential health care, this bill turns back the clock, making abortion prohibitively difficult to access and pregnancy and childbirth much more dangerous for Utah families. It is more proof that some politicians won't stop until every aspect of reproductive health is micro-managed by people who don't care about or understand these complex and personal medical issues. How many times must Utah politicians prove to the world they are anti-abortion extremists who want to control our lives, bodies, and futures? And at what cost to our state’s health care system and reputation?” 

Statement attributed to Karrie Galloway, President and CEO of Planned Parenthood Association of Utah