SB 30-ABORTION: INFORMED CONSENT; INFORMATION  CHAIR FRED DYSON announced SB 30 to be up for consideration. SENATOR LYDA GREEN moved to adopt the committee substitute (CS) to SB 30, version LS0193\S, Lauterbach, 4/11/03. There were no objections and it was so ordered. CHAIR DYSON explained that the CS adopts the Division of Public Health's suggestion to put updated information on informed consent on a website where it can be easily downloaded. That will make it easier for the department to keep up current addresses of support groups and providers and greatly reduce the cost. That is the main change. The bill puts in statute that which is already in regulation requiring informed consent and gives the option, but does not demand, that the provider put the website information in his own pamphlet. DR. BOB JOHNSON, Kodiak, said he is a retired physician who in his last 10 years of practice performed an average of 70 abortions per year. He explained that he scheduled five visits for each patient. During the first visit, he determined if the patient had really investigated other options and felt comfortable with the decision; the second visit was to inform the patient about the procedure and possible problems that could arise and to answer questions. He found that patients expressed many varying needs and that each one needed to be treated as an individual. He didn't have a set list of information he felt required to give to them, because some of them couldn't tolerate it, some would have been angered by it, some didn't need it and others had questions that probably wouldn't have been included in his list. Dictating the requirements of what a person should be told is a mistake. The deputy commissioner pointed out that the department doesn't regulate, monitor or license clinics or doctors offices and that this might produce a situation where monitoring is necessary. CHAIR DYSON said that some testifiers indicated that having a 24-hour waiting period would be a great inconvenience. He asked if he considered it good practice to have first contact with a client, perform the procedure and put the client back on an airplane in one day. DR. JOHNSON replied that he was never faced with that situation, because Kodiak is the end of the line and they were all there to begin with. He thought most doctors would like to have a couple of days with the patient to explore the decision and answer questions about the procedure. CHAIR DYSON asked if he thought it is wise to observe the patient for some period after the procedure to make sure there aren't complications. DR. JOHNSON replied about a half hour is all that is necessary if the patient is in the same community. CHAIR DYSON asked about patients who fly out to a rural community. DR. JOHNSON said the complication rate is extremely low, but he wouldn't want anyone flying on the same day. MS. FRANCES CATER, Kodiak, said that SB 30 is unnecessary and that any ethical doctor would do all those things anyway. It would be very expensive for DHSS to monitor this program instead of doing more important things. MS. PAULINE UTTER, Anchorage resident, opposed SB 30, but said if it passes, she thinks it should also include information about how hard it is for the mother to get child support. MS. ROBIN SMITH, Anchorage resident, said she wants to reduce the number of abortions, but thought the best way to do that is to reduce the number of unintended pregnancies. She is disappointed that the governor's budget reduced all state money for family planning. Alaska has the highest rate of teen pregnancies and rape in the country. MS. KATIE BRYSON, Anchorage resident, also opposed SB 30 for all the aforementioned reasons and added while the intent of the legislation is to empower women by mandating choice through information, the language of this bill would make the pamphlet heavily biased rather than objective. She opined, "It would serve to intimidate rather than inform." MS. SOPHIE BUTIGAN, Anchorage resident, opposed SB 30. She personally finds the 24-hour waiting period biased against lower income women and women without access to affordable health care. SENATOR GREEN moved to pass CSSB 30(HES) from committee with individual recommendations and the accompanying fiscal note. SENATOR DAVIS objected. A roll call vote was taken. SENATORS GREEN, WILKEN, and DYSON voted yea; SENATOR DAVIS voted nay; and CSSB 30(HES) moved from committee.