HCS CSSB 30(HES): "An Act relating to information and services available to pregnant women and other persons; and ensuring informed consent before an abortion may be performed, except in cases of medical emergency."
00 HOUSE CS FOR CS FOR SENATE BILL NO. 30(HES) 01 "An Act relating to information and services available to pregnant women and other 02 persons; and ensuring informed consent before an abortion may be performed, except in 03 cases of medical emergency." 04 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 05 * Section 1. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section 06 to read: 07 LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS. The legislature finds that 08 (1) duties of the state include regulating medical practice and fostering the 09 development of standards of professional conduct; 10 (2) the state is interested in protecting the life and health of pregnant women; 11 (3) women have a right to know the medical risks associated with their 12 reproductive options; 13 (4) the creation of an unbiased, scientific information site on the Internet that 14 is reviewed and approved for medical accuracy and appropriateness by recognized obstetrics
01 and gynecological specialists designated by the State Medical Board and that sufficiently 02 describes reproductive options and their potential consequences will protect, inform, and 03 promote a woman's free and private choices; 04 (5) the creation of an unbiased, scientific information site on the Internet that 05 is reviewed and approved for medical accuracy and appropriateness by recognized obstetrics 06 and gynecological specialists designated by the State Medical Board and that sufficiently 07 describes reproductive options and their potential consequences will reduce costly and undue 08 litigation, will promote judicial economy and resources, and will provide physicians with a 09 clear understanding of what constitutes informed consent for abortion by providing immunity 10 to physicians who use the information from the Internet site. 11 * Sec. 2. AS 18.05 is amended by adding a new section to read: 12 Sec. 18.05.032. Information relating to pregnancy and pregnancy 13 alternatives. (a) The department shall maintain on the Internet, in printable form, 14 standard information that 15 (1) contains geographically indexed material designed to inform a 16 person of public and private agencies and services that are available to assist a 17 pregnant woman with the woman's reproductive choices; the department should 18 include information about at least the following types of agencies and services: 19 (A) agencies, services, clinics, and facilities designed to assist a 20 woman through pregnancy, including adoption agencies and counseling 21 services; 22 (B) agencies, services, clinics, and facilities that provide 23 abortion options and counseling and post-abortion counseling and services; and 24 (C) agencies, services, clinics, and facilities designed to assist 25 with or provide contraceptive options and counseling to help prevent future 26 unwanted pregnancies; 27 (2) includes a comprehensive regional directory of the agencies and 28 clinics identified by the department under (1) of this subsection, a description of the 29 services they offer, and the manner in which the agencies and clinics may be 30 contacted, including telephone numbers; 31 (3) provides information concerning the circumstantial criteria for the
01 availability of medical assistance benefits for prenatal care, childbirth, and neonatal 02 care, the circumstantial criteria for the availability of medical assistance benefits for 03 abortion services, and the circumstantial criteria for the availability of medical 04 assistance benefits for contraception; 05 (4) states that informed and voluntary consent is required under 06 AS 18.16.060 for an abortion; 07 (5) states that the father of a child is liable to assist in the support of 08 the child even in instances where the father has offered to pay for an abortion, and that 09 the law permits adoptive parents to pay costs of prenatal care, childbirth, and neonatal 10 care; 11 (6) describes the fetal development of a typical unborn child at two- 12 week gestational increments from fertilization to full-term, including photographs 13 depicting the anatomical characteristics of a typical unborn child at two-week 14 gestational increments, and relevant information about the possibility of an unborn 15 child's survival at the various gestational ages; the fetal dimensions in the photographs 16 must be accurately represented and shall be realistic and appropriate for the woman's 17 state of pregnancy; the information must be objective, nonjudgmental information that 18 is reviewed and approved for medical accuracy and appropriateness by recognized 19 obstetrics and gynecological specialists designated by the State Medical Board and 20 designed to convey only accurate scientific information about unborn children at 21 various gestational ages; 22 (7) contains objective, unbiased information that is reviewed and 23 approved for medical accuracy and appropriateness by recognized obstetrics and 24 gynecological specialists designated by the State Medical Board and that describes the 25 methods of abortion procedures and treatments commonly employed and the medical 26 risks and possible complications commonly associated with each procedure and 27 treatment, as well as the possible psychological effects that have been associated with 28 having an abortion; 29 (8) contains objective, unbiased information that is reviewed and 30 approved for medical accuracy and appropriateness by recognized obstetrics and 31 gynecological specialists designated by the State Medical Board and describing the
01 possible medical risks and complications commonly associated with pregnancy and 02 childbirth, as well as the possible psychological effects that have been associated with 03 carrying a child to term; 04 (9) contains objective, unbiased, and comprehensive information that 05 is reviewed and approved for medical accuracy and appropriateness by recognized 06 obstetrics and gynecological specialists designated by the State Medical Board and on 07 different types of available contraceptive choices and the medical risk and possible 08 complications commonly associated with each method as well as the possible 09 psychological effects that have been associated with using contraceptives; 10 (10) contains a dated, time-stamped signature form that can be printed 11 out as evidence that the person identified on the form, with appropriate security 12 safeguards as to identity, has reviewed the information described in (1) - (9) of this 13 subsection. 14 (b) The information required under (a) of this section must be written in easily 15 comprehensible language and must be displayed in a typeface that is large enough to 16 be clearly legible. 17 (c) In this section, 18 (1) "fertilization" means the fusion of a human spermatozoon with a 19 human ovum; 20 (2) "gestational age" means the age of the unborn child as calculated 21 from the first day of the last menstrual period of a pregnant woman; 22 (3) "informed consent" is consent that would be considered voluntary 23 and informed under AS 18.16.060(b); 24 (4) "unborn child" means the offspring of a human being in utero at 25 various stages of biological development. 26 * Sec. 3. AS 18.16.010(a) is amended to read: 27 (a) An abortion may not be performed in this state unless 28 (1) the abortion is performed by a physician or surgeon licensed by the 29 State Medical Board under AS 08.64.200; 30 (2) the abortion is performed in a hospital or other facility approved for 31 the purpose by the Department of Health and Social Services or a hospital operated by
01 the federal government or an agency of the federal government; 02 (3) before an abortion is knowingly performed or induced on an 03 unmarried, unemancipated woman under 17 years of age, consent has been given as 04 required under AS 18.16.020 or a court has authorized the minor to consent to the 05 abortion under AS 18.16.030 and the minor consents; for purposes of enforcing this 06 paragraph, there is a rebuttable presumption that a woman who is unmarried and under 07 17 years of age is unemancipated; [AND] 08 (4) the woman is domiciled or physically present in the state for 30 09 days before the abortion; and 10 (5) the applicable requirements of AS 18.16.060 have been 11 satisfied. 12 * Sec. 4. AS 18.16.010 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 13 (h) A person who performs or induces an abortion in violation of (a)(5) of this 14 section is civilly liable to the pregnant woman and the pregnant woman's estate, and 15 only to the pregnant woman and the pregnant woman's estate, for compensatory and 16 punitive damages caused by the violation except that, for purposes of an action for 17 damages under this subsection, a person is considered to have complied with 18 AS 18.16.060(b)(1)(C) and (D) if the person demonstrates by a preponderance of the 19 evidence that the woman received or reviewed a copy of the material maintained on 20 the Internet under AS 18.05.032 at least 24 hours before the abortion was performed 21 or induced. In a civil action under this subsection, there is a rebuttable presumption 22 that an abortion was performed without the pregnant woman's informed consent if the 23 physician who performed the abortion does not submit into evidence the copy of the 24 woman's written certification required to be retained in the physician's files under 25 AS 18.16.060(b)(3). 26 * Sec. 5. AS 18.16 is amended by adding a new section to read: 27 Sec. 18.16.060. Informed consent requirements. (a) Except in the case of a 28 medical emergency, a person may not knowingly perform or induce an abortion 29 without the voluntary and informed consent of 30 (1) a woman on whom an abortion is to be performed or induced; 31 (2) the parent, guardian, or custodian of a pregnant, unemancipated
01 minor if required under AS 18.16.020; 02 (3) a pregnant, unemancipated minor if authorized by a court under 03 AS 18.60.030; or 04 (4) the parent or guardian of a pregnant woman legally determined to 05 be mentally incompetent. 06 (b) Consent to an abortion is voluntary and informed when all of the following 07 are true: 08 (1) at least 24 hours before the abortion procedure, the physician who 09 is to perform the abortion, a member of the physician's staff who is a licensed health 10 care provider, or the referring physician has verbally informed the woman or another 11 person whose consent is required of the 12 (A) name of the physician who will perform the procedure; 13 (B) gestational estimation of the pregnancy at the time the 14 abortion is to be performed; 15 (C) nature and risks of undergoing or not undergoing the 16 proposed procedure that a reasonable patient would consider material to 17 making a voluntary and informed decision of whether to undergo the 18 procedure; and 19 (D) availability of the information required to be maintained on 20 the Internet under AS 18.05.032; if the person requests a written copy of the 21 Internet information, the physician shall provide it; the requirement of this 22 subparagraph may also be satisfied by a member of the physician's staff who is 23 a licensed health care provider performing the required activities if the licensed 24 person offers the person an opportunity to consult a physician; the 25 requirements of this subparagraph may also be satisfied if the physician or a 26 member of the physician's staff receives from the person an appropriately 27 dated and signed form of the type described in AS 18.05.032(a)(10) and retains 28 the form in the patient's file; 29 (2) before the abortion, the woman or another person whose consent is 30 required certifies in writing that the information required to be given under (1) of this 31 subsection has been provided; and
01 (3) the physician who is to perform the abortion or a representative of 02 the physician receives a copy of the written certificate required under (2) of this 03 subsection and retains a copy in the physician's file. 04 (c) The information required in (b)(1)(A) - (C) of this section shall be 05 provided individually and in a private setting to protect privacy, maintain the 06 confidentiality of the decision, ensure that the information focuses on the individual 07 circumstances, and ensure an adequate opportunity to ask questions. Provision of the 08 information telephonically or by electronic mail or regular mail at least 24 hours 09 before the person's appointment satisfies the requirements of this subsection as long as 10 the person whose consent is required under (a) of this section has an opportunity to ask 11 questions after receiving the information. 12 (d) In this section, "medical emergency" means a condition that, on the basis 13 of a physician's good faith clinical judgment, so complicates the medical condition of 14 a pregnant woman that 15 (1) the immediate termination of the woman's pregnancy is necessary 16 to avert the woman's death; or 17 (2) a delay in providing an abortion will create serious risk of 18 substantial and irreversible impairment of a major bodily function of the woman. 19 * Sec. 6. AS 18.50.245(e) is amended to read: 20 (e) The state registrar shall adopt regulations to implement this section. The 21 regulations that establish the information that will be required in a report of an induced 22 termination of pregnancy 23 (1) must require information substantially similar to the information 24 required under the United States Standard Report of Induced Termination of 25 Pregnancy, as published by the National Center for Health Statistics, Centers for 26 Disease Control and Prevention, United States Department of Health and Human 27 Services, in April 1998, as part of DHHS Publication No. (PHS) 98-1117; 28 (2) must require, if known, whether the unidentified patient 29 requested and received a written copy of the information required to be 30 maintained on the Internet under AS 18.05.032; and 31 (3) may not include provisions that would violate a woman's
01 privacy by requiring the woman's name or any identifying information in the 02 report. 03 * Sec. 7. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 04 read: 05 SEVERABILITY. Under AS 01.10.030, the provisions of this Act are severable.