ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE HEALTH AND SOCIAL SERVICES STANDING COMMITTEE
February 26, 2020
1:31 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator David Wilson, Chair
Senator Natasha von Imhof, Vice Chair
Senator Cathy Giessel
Senator Mike Shower
Senator Tom Begich
MEMBERS ABSENT
All members present
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
SENATE BILL NO. 173
"An Act relating to mobile intensive care paramedics; relating
to duties of the State Medical Board and the Department of
Health and Social Services; and providing for an effective
date."
- MOVED SB 173 OUT OF COMMITTEE
SENATE BILL NO. 134
"An Act relating to medical assistance reimbursement for the
services of licensed professional counselors; and providing for
an effective date."
- MOVED SB 134 OUT OF COMMITTEE
SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 13
"Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the State of
Alaska relating to abortion."
- HEARD & HELD
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
BILL: SB 173
SHORT TITLE: LICENSE MOBILE INTENSIVE CARE PARAMEDICS
SPONSOR(s): SENATOR(s) REVAK
02/03/20 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
02/03/20 (S) HSS, L&C
02/17/20 (S) HSS AT 1:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
02/17/20 (S) Heard & Held
02/17/20 (S) MINUTE(HSS)
02/26/20 (S) HSS AT 1:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
BILL: SB 134
SHORT TITLE: MEDICAID COVERAGE OF LIC. COUNSELORS
SPONSOR(s): SENATOR(s) WILSON
01/21/20 (S) PREFILE RELEASED 1/10/20
01/21/20 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
01/21/20 (S) HSS, FIN
02/21/20 (S) HSS AT 1:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
02/21/20 (S) Heard & Held
02/21/20 (S) MINUTE(HSS)
02/26/20 (S) HSS AT 1:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
BILL: SJR 13
SHORT TITLE: CONST. AM: PROHIBIT ABORTION/FUNDING
SPONSOR(s): SENATOR(s) HUGHES
01/21/20 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
01/21/20 (S) HSS, JUD, FIN
02/26/20 (S) HSS AT 1:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
WITNESS REGISTER
DAVE WALLACE, Chief Executive Officer
Mat-Su Regional Medical Center
Palmer, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 134.
ELIZABETH RIPLEY, Chief Executive Officer
Mat-Su Health Foundation
Wasilla, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 134.
JARED KOSIN, President and Chief Executive Officer
Alaska State Hospital and Nursing Home Association
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 134.
SENATOR SHELLY HUGHES
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified as sponsor of SJR 13.
LISA HART, Staff
Senator Hughes
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Presented an overview and sectional of SJR
13 on behalf of the sponsor.
SENATOR KATRINA JACKSON, representing self
Louisiana State Legislature
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SJR 13.
DONNA HARRISON, M.D., Executive Director
American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists
Eau Claire, Michigan
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SJR 13.
TERRISA BUKOVINAC, representing self
San Francisco, California
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SJR 13.
LISA GENTEMANN, representing self
Eagle River, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SJR 13.
LOREN LEMAN, representing self
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SJR 13.
ROBIN SMITH, representing self
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SJR 13.
CAROLINE MALSEED, Reverend
Church of the Holy Trinity
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SJR 13.
ROBB ARNOLD, representing self
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SJR 13.
SARAH HENNEMANN, M.D., representing self
Palmer, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SJR 13.
WINDY PERKINS, representing self
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SJR 13.
MOIRA PYHALA, representing self
Soldotna, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SJR 13.
JONATHAN FISHER, representing self
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SJR 13.
LUANN MCVEY, representing self
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SJR 13.
ACTION NARRATIVE
1:31:47 PM
CHAIR DAVID WILSON called the Senate Health and Social Services
Standing Committee meeting to order at 1:31 p.m. Present at the
call to order were Senators Giessel, von Imhof, Begich, Shower,
and Chair Wilson.
SB 173-LICENSE MOBILE INTENSIVE CARE PARAMEDICS
1:32:12 PM
CHAIR WILSON announced the consideration of SENATE BILL NO. 173,
"An Act relating to mobile intensive care paramedics; relating
to duties of the State Medical Board and the Department of
Health and Social Services; and providing for an effective
date."
He noted the committee heard an overview on February 17, took
public testimony, and received an updated fiscal note from the
Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS). He solicited a
motion.
1:32:47 PM
SENATOR VON IMHOF moved to report SB 173, version 31-LS1365\M,
from committee with individual recommendations and updated
fiscal notes. There being no objection, SB 173 was reported from
the Senate Health and Social Services Standing Committee.
1:33:11 PM
At ease
SB 134-MEDICAID COVERAGE OF LIC. COUNSELORS
1:34:36 PM
CHAIR WILSON reconvened the meeting and announced the
consideration of SENATE BILL NO. 134, "An Act relating to
medical assistance reimbursement for the services of licensed
professional counselors; and providing for an effective date."
He noted that he is the prime sponsor of SB 134. The bill was
presented on February 21, 2020 and public testimony was taken.
This is the second hearing on the bill.
1:35:16 PM
DAVE WALLACE, Chief Executive Officer, Mat-Su Regional Medical
Center, Palmer, Alaska, said Mat-Su Regional is a 125-bed acute
care hospital in the fastest growing service area in Alaska. The
Medicaid coverage for licensed professional counselors is
important because it is part of the continuum of care for
behavioral health. He expressed concern on the lack of
behavioral health services in Mat-Su and throughout the state.
Mat-Su Regional seeks to have care provided at the most
appropriate level. If more counselors are paid to see Medicaid
patients with behavioral health needs, it will keep the patients
from going to a higher, more expensive level of care, such as
the emergency department.
MR. WALLACE said Mat-Su Regional works with the Mat-Su Health
Foundation to reduce the overuse of the emergency department
through the High Utilizer Mat-Su project [HUMS]. HUMS targets
patients who have used the emergency department at least five or
more times in a year. He reported that 68 percent of over
utilizers are Medicaid recipients. The majority of these
patients suffer from a primary or secondary diagnosis related to
behavioral health. His counterparts at Mat-Su Health Foundation
have testified that this program has reduced costs.
MR. WALLACE said the number of patients served is relatively
small but Mat-Su Regional estimates it has saved over $1 million
dollars by reducing the number of emergency room (ER) visits by
overutilizers. Sixty percent of ER patients have a behavioral
health diagnosis and would benefit from counseling. Allowing
counselors to serve behavioral health patients will result in
additional savings to the state for Medicaid services. With
passage of SB 134, Mat-Su Regional's primary care clinic can use
its licensed professional counselor to serve Medicaid patients.
SB 134 will enhance the continuum of care.
1:39:12 PM
ELIZABETH RIPLEY, Chief Executive Officer, Mat-Su Health
Foundation, Wasilla, Alaska, said SB 134 is crucial because it
will help address Mat-Su residents' mental health and substance
use disorders. Licensed professional counselors are key
behavioral health providers for these issues. Mat-Su residents
identified prominent issues in the Mat-Su Health Foundation's
last three community needs assessments. In 2013, residents and
professionals indicated the top five health challenges were
alcohol and substance abuse, children experiencing trauma and
violence, depression and suicide, domestic violence and sexual
assault, and lack of access to behavioral health care.
Counseling services can address these issues. SB 134 would
expand the health care professions by including professional
counseling services to residents on Medicaid.
MS. RIPLEY said the prevalence of mental health and substance
use disorders and crises is increasing in the Mat-Su region and
statewide. The average annual growth rate for Mat-Su Regional
emergency department visits for patients with behavioral health
diagnoses was 20 percent from 2015 to 2017. This increase is
largely due to the opioid epidemic and lack of access to
treatment. She said Mr. Wallace reported that Mat-Su Regional
has an inpatient unit, but up until last year the hospital did
not provide behavioral health care treatment. Passage of SB 134
will help address behavioral health issues by providing patients
with the appropriate level of care at the onset of the problem,
before their behavior health issues escalate. Mat-Su Regional is
inundated with behavioral health patients in crisis. In 2016,
3,443 residents seen by the ER had a primary behavioral health
diagnosis. Of the 3,443 patients using the ER 8,400 times, 46
percent were on Medicaid. The top diagnoses for these patients
were suicidal ideation and self-harm, alcohol-related disorders,
delirium, dementia, and cognitive disorders. These ER visits
cost $43.8 million dollars solely for facility charges. The
average charge per visit was $5,216 and the average per patient
cost totaled $12,725. Clearly, the emergency department is the
least cost effective method to treat behavioral health problems.
Early intervention with more immediate patient access to a
behavioral health providers can reduce costs for the hospital
and the state and reduce patient pain and suffering.
1:44:22 PM
MS. RIPLEY said access remains a problem. Very few primary care
practices employ behavioral health providers. She indicated that
two of the many primary care practices in Mat-Su, outside of
federally qualified health centers, employ a behavioral health
clinician. One reason there is so little integration of
behavioral health in these practices is that providers cannot
bill Medicaid for professional counseling services. Another
reason is due to a shortage of psychiatrists to supervise
behavioral health providers. She noted that Senator Giessel
sponsored Senate Bill 169, which passed the legislature in 2018,
allows behavioral health care providers to be supervised by any
physician.
MS. RIPLEY said Senate Bill 105 authorized Medicaid
reimbursement for marriage and family counselors. The next step
is to add Medicaid reimbursement to behavioral health providers,
which will meet patient needs and make behavioral health
services sustainable in physician offices.
MS. RIPLEY noted that Mr. Wallace referenced HUMS. The Mat-Su
Foundation started HUMS as a way to provide care coordination
and access to community supports for high utilizers, defined as
residents who had five or more visits in the emergency system in
a year and who were unable to independently access consistent
and appropriate care and support in the community. Mr. Wallace
mentioned the dramatic cost savings of more than one million
dollars a year. The Mat-Su Foundation is entering the third year
of the project. It also has alleviated significant trauma for
not just the patients, but for the health care providers and
family who often suffer trauma along with the patients.
MS. RIPLEY said there would be far less need for programs like
HUMS if people had access to care and support before their needs
become a crisis. The project has had more than $2.168 million in
cost savings. The project has a third party evaluator who tracks
its progress and any need for course correction. In 2018,
$347,288 in emergency room charges was saved by the top three
utilizers alone. That same year seven patients who enrolled in
HUMS did not use the emergency department at all.
She said the age of the super utilizers ranges from 16 to 82.
Seventy-two percent have Medicaid coverage. She related a story
of a young adult who had 17 visits to the emergency department
before enrolling in HUMS. Most of his emergency visits led to
inpatient admission and he seemed to have little to no interest
in improving his situation. The HUMS team built a rapport with
the client and he did want to change. He is now sober, his
diabetes is managed, he is working full time, and has a great
relationship with his primary care provider. He has years to
live to make a positive difference.
1:50:47 PM
JARED KOSIN, President and Chief Executive Officer, Alaska State
Hospital and Nursing Home Association, Anchorage, Alaska, said
SB 134 is good policy. People talk about cutting costs and
investing in the continuum of care at the community level, where
it is a lot cheaper, and reserving those higher level, more
expensive settings for people who actually need it is the way to
do so. This is a very practical step forward.
1:51:46 PM
CHAIR WILSON solicited a motion.
1:52:01 PM
SENATOR VON IMHOF moved to report SB 134, version 31-LS1261\A,
from committee with individual recommendations and attached
fiscal notes.
There being no objection, SB 134 was reported from the Senate
Health and Social Services Standing Committee.
1:52:19 PM
At ease
SJR 13-CONST. AM: PROHIBIT ABORTION/FUNDING
1:54:45 PM
CHAIR WILSON reconvened the meeting and announced the
consideration of SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 13, "Proposing an
amendment to the Constitution of the State of Alaska relating to
abortion."
He advised that the committee would hear an overview from the
sponsor and take invited and public testimony. He urged people
to email their testimony to shss@akleg.gov. He called Senator
Hughes and her staff to the table.
1:55:40 PM
SENATOR SHELLY HUGHES, Alaska State Legislature, Juneau, Alaska,
sponsor of SJR 13, thanked the committee for hearing the
resolution. She pointed out that SJR 13 does not specifically
prohibit abortion. Instead, it proposes an amendment to the
Constitution of the State of Alaska by adding a new section to
provide clarity regarding Article 1, which pertains to the right
to privacy and the right to equal protection and Alaska's
ability to set public policy related to abortion.
SENATOR HUGHES noted that in 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court
declared with Roe v. Wade and reaffirmed in 1992 with Planned
Parenthood v. Casey that there is an alleged federal
constitutional right to abortion. However, the federal courts
have held that states can still legislate related issues. For
example, states can ban the use of public funds for abortions,
require a parent to consent for an abortion for a minor, and
even could disallow certain procedures, such as partial birth
abortion or late-term abortion. In Minnesota, both parents must
be informed before a minor can have an abortion. In Illinois,
one parent must be informed. She reported that 21 of the 37
states have laws requiring parental consent and prohibit partial
birth abortion. Three states have laws that apply to post
viability, which is the ability to survive outside of the womb.
SENATOR HUGHES said blue states such as California, Washington,
Minnesota, Illinois, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Massachusetts
prohibit abortion after 24-weeks. Gray states are competitively
split between left and right or Democrat and Republican,
according to Gallup. She said three gray states: Texas,
Nebraska, and North Carolina, prohibit abortion when a fetus is
more than 18 to 22 weeks old. Another three gray states recently
passed heartbeat bills, prohibiting the abortion of fetuses at
six to eight weeks.
SENATOR HUGHES said Alaska is unable to have any provisions in
law related to abortion. She asked members to help to fix the
Constitution of the State of Alaska so some parameters that even
blue and gray states have could be allowed to stand if it is the
will of the people through their elected legislators or the
voter initiative process. Ballot initiatives and laws similar to
ones she just discussed have been struck down by the Alaska
Supreme Court.
SENATOR HUGHES said these laws have been subject to a series of
decisions asserting the existence of a state constitutional
right to abortion that protects abortion even more broadly than
the U.S. Constitution. As a result, numerous laws that would be
completely permissible under the federal constitution and that
exist in other states have been struck down by Alaska's courts.
SENATOR HUGHES said SJR 13 would allow Alaska to be on par with
other states. It would permit the decisions that Alaskans make
on issues regarding the parents of minors, unborn babies, and
public funding of abortion to stand. She expressed concern that
the state has seen a pattern of obstruction by the Alaska
Supreme Court. This resolution is not designed to answer the
question of what a woman may legally do, or if the state should
fund abortion, but to keep the courts from adding something to
the Constitution of the State of Alaska that its framers never
envisioned. She offered her view that the Court has used right
to privacy as a default to overrule abortion-related laws in
Alaska.
2:01:19 PM
SENATOR HUGHES referred to Alaska's Constitution: A Citizen
Guide by Legislative Affairs, which said "The right to privacy
was prompted by fear of the potential for misuse of computerized
information systems, which were then in their infancies." In the
1970s, the Department of Public Safety was developing the Alaska
Justice Information System (AJIS), a computerized database of
the criminal history of individuals. Fearful that such a system
was the precursor of a Big Brother government information
bureaucracy, legislators responded with a constitutional
amendment on the right to privacy.
SENATOR HUGHES said SJR 13 relates to protecting the separation
of powers.
2:04:39 PM
LISA HART, Staff, Senator Hughes, Alaska State Legislature,
Juneau, Alaska, said that in 2019, conservative state
legislators raced to enact an unprecedented wave of bans for
some, most, or all abortions. At the end of the year, 25 new
abortion bans had been signed into law, primarily in the South
and Midwest. Legislators also continued their efforts to adopt
other types of abortion restrictions. State-level policy to ban
or restrict abortion are an important backdrop as the U.S.
Supreme Court considers a Louisiana law to require abortion
providers have admitting privileges at a local hospital.
MS. HART said her point is that action is being taken by states
to take this matter to the legislative, the law-making body of
government, as opposed to it being decided by judicial review.
2:07:14 PM
SENATOR BEGICH said Ms. Hart is couching this legislation in
terms of politics. Her map shows Alaska listed as a solid
Republican state. He asked if that is the best way to frame this
issue. In Alaska, the difference between the top two candidates
in the last gubernatorial race was less than five percent. The
prior governor was nonpartisan and supported by the Democratic
Party. The U.S. senator from 2008 to 2014 was also a Democrat.
He asked if that is the right way to present this argument
SENATOR HUGHES said she is not trying to introduce partisan
politics, but the point is to make it clear that a spectrum of
states have decided to put parameters around abortion. Alaska is
unable to do that. Alaska is likely to be a gray state for 2020.
It does not matter where anyone falls along the political
spectrum, but there have been parameters set in various states.
It is not to pit anyone against another. Senator Katrina Jackson
is an African-American and a Democrat from Louisiana. She led
this in her state. This is not partisan; it is about the babies,
she said.
2:09:34 PM
MS. HART provided a sectional analysis of SJR 13:
Section 1 Article I, Constitution of the State of
Alaska, Page 1, Lines 3-7
Amends the Constitution of the State of Alaska by
adding a new section, Section 26. Abortion. The
amendment states that in order to protect human life,
nothing in this constitution may be construed to
secure or protect a right to an abortion or require
the State to fund an abortion.
Section 2 Article I, Constitution of the State of
Alaska, Page 1, Lines 8-10
Adds that the amendment proposed by this resolution
shall be placed before the voters of the state at the
next general election in conformity with art. XIII,
sec. 1, Constitution of the State of Alaska, and the
election laws of the state.
SENATOR BEGICH asked Senator Hughes if there is anything in law
to prohibit anyone from choosing not to have an abortion.
SENATOR HUGHES replied she did not believe so, but the
Department of Law was available to answer any questions
regarding legality.
SENATOR BEGICH asked if there is any law in the state that
compels a person to have an abortion or does a person have the
ability to choose to take a child to term.
SENATOR HUGHES responded that a person has that ability, but the
baby does not have a choice. The legislation allows this body
and the voter initiative process to decide abortion policy. The
state will still be subject to federal law. She offered her
belief that just as a woman wants a choice, the unborn babies
deserve a choice to live. However, SJR 13 relates to the state's
ability to maximize what can be done under federal law, which it
cannot do at this time.
SENATOR BEGICH said it removes the coverage of Alaska's right to
privacy in issues regarding abortion.
SENATOR HUGHES answered that is correct.
SENATOR BEGICH asked if there is some level of unfairness in
removing one gender from the coverage of right to privacy when
it comes to this issue. He said he recognizes her concern for
those who have not yet been born, but he speaks to those
specifically affected by removal of this coverage of their right
to privacy.
SENATOR HUGHES replied she would like to discuss the resolution,
not have a philosophical debate during the committee.
CHAIR WILSON said many people want to testify and written
testimony can be submitted to shss@akleg.gov. He turned to
invited testimony.
2:14:56 PM
SENATOR KATRINA JACKSON, representing self, Louisiana State
Legislature, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, said that when the U.S.
Supreme Court passed Roe v. Wade, each state legislature has an
interest in regulating abortions and protecting the health and
safety of their constituents. Louisiana has parental consent
laws but some of Alaska's laws regarding parental consent have
been struck down by the Alaska Supreme Court.
SENATOR JACKSON said Louisiana's law will go to a vote of the
people this year. She expressed concern that courts can strike
down legislation. She said she plans to file legislation related
to human trafficking and reporting requirements for abortion
facilities. She reported that human traffickers brought women to
Shreveport, from Texas for abortions. This was discovered
because parental consent was required and some alleged parents
were not. Although the records are private, the Louisiana
Department of Health investigated the clinic. She expressed
concern that without parental consent laws, states cannot
protect vulnerable young girls who are unwillingly taken to an
abortion clinic.
She said she is prolife, but she is also a practicing attorney.
She offered her belief that abortion should be regulated.
However, without proposed constitutional amendments, some states
will never be able to regulate abortion clinics and their
practices. She expressed concern that the courts are ruling
against legislation even when there is a compelling state
interest. She said that without passing a constitutional
amendment, some states cannot regulate health standards, which
goes far beyond whether a woman has the right to abortion.
2:21:33 PM
DONNA HARRISON, M.D., Executive Director, American Association
of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists, Eau Claire,
Michigan, said her organization represents over 4,000
reproductive health professionals throughout the United States.
These physicians practice in accordance with the Hippocratic
Oath. Hippocratic medical professionals have vowed to do no harm
to their patients and certainly not to intentionally kill them.
These physicians recognize both the pregnant mother and the
human being in her womb as their patients. Although some people
will testify that elective abortion is necessary to a woman's
reproductive health, it is not true. Eighty-five percent of ob-
gyns do not perform abortions as part of their professional
practice, even though these physicians are all trained to do so.
The purpose of an elective abortion is to produce a dead baby
for social, not medical reasons, which was made explicitly clear
by the testimony of the abortion providers at the partial birth
abortion hearings before the U.S. Supreme Court. If an ob-gyn
needs to separate the mother and her unborn human being in order
to save her life and the baby can survive outside of the womb,
then the ob-gyn will do a delivery procedure designed to
maximize the chances of survival of both the mother and her
unborn child. She described the various partial birth abortion
procedures. Occasionally, babies survive the feticide procedure
which is called a "failed abortion."
DR. HARRISON said it is true that rarely, the separation of the
mother and the unborn human being in her womb must be performed
before a baby is capable of surviving outside in order to save
the mother's life. This is not the same as an elective abortion.
Some short-term risks of abortion are major hemorrhage,
infection, anesthesia complications, damage to the mother's
womb, and death. Long-term health risks include increased risk
of preterm birth in subsequent pregnancies, increased risk of
breast cancer, an increased risk of suicide, drug abuse, and
major depression. These are certainly public health
considerations. She urged members to pass SJR 13 for the sake of
the mother's health and the unborn child.
2:27:20 PM
TERRISA BUKOVINAC, representing self, San Francisco, California,
said she is an atheist, liberal, feminist, vegan, LGBTQIA ally,
registered Democrat, and founder and executive director of Pro-
Life San Francisco, a millennial-lead organization dedicated to
resisting the influence of abortion in their community. As a
full-time activist, she has seen similar bills across the
nation. She has asked legislators across the nation why it is so
controversial to declare that there is no right to abortion
since the legislation does not criminalize abortion. Some people
want to ban all abortions. There are those want to ban all birth
control or sex outside of marriage. She said thousands of
research projects rely on fetal tissue that require a monthly
supply of multiple, late-term pristine fetuses between the ages
of 18 and 24 weeks from elective abortions. Fetuses born after
24 weeks have a high likelihood of survival if given medical
care. She described the medical procedures.
MS. BUKOVINAC said the vast majority of people do not want to
ban all abortions; they want to ensure that it is regulated and
the numbers are reduced She said this majority must stand up to
the pressure of the powerful abortion lobby. She urged members
to protect viable, unborn babies from an industry that seeks to
profit from their demise by supporting SJR 13.
2:32:07 PM
CHAIR WILSON noted that over 100 people had signed up to testify
and urged people to email written testimony. He opened public
testimony.
2:32:31 PM
LISA GENTEMANN, representing self, Eagle River, Alaska, said the
state must defend and protect and speak up for the safety and
rights of the unborn until they are able to defend themselves.
She urged members to protect all Alaskans by passing SJR 13.
2:34:48 PM
LOREN LEMAN, representing self, Anchorage, Alaska, noted that he
served in the legislature for 14 years and as lieutenant
governor for four years. SJR 13 is a necessary step to restore
to elected officials and the people of Alaska the ability to set
policy on abortion. He offered his belief that a series of
unfortunate court decisions has usurped this authority for more
than two decades. In 1979, he sponsored Senate Bill 24 to allow
Alaskans to enforce the parental consent law related to
abortions for minors. When Alaska legalized abortion in 1970,
the law included a provision requiring parental consent before
an abortion, but an attorney general's opinion said that was
unenforceable. His bill included a judicial bypass to allow a
young girl to go to court to obtain permission instead of from
parents. Planned Parenthood sued and the Alaska Supreme Court
ruled against the statute. Justice Dana Fabe wrote that only a
parental notification law would be acceptable. He subsequently
gathered the signatures for a citizen initiative and that became
law and was in effect for several years. [Mr. Leman was unable
to finish his testimony in the allotted time.]
2:38:17 PM
ROBIN SMITH, representing self, Anchorage, Alaska, said that in
1973 Alaska was the third state to establish the right of a
woman to have an abortion, prior to the U.S. Supreme Court
ruling on Roe v. Wade. Women worked to get the law passed
because women died during illegal abortions. According to the
Guttmacher Institute, 25 percent of women will have an abortion
before the age of 45. Fifty-nine percent of women who have
abortions are already mothers. Making abortion illegal forces it
underground and makes it unsafe. The best way to prevent
abortion is to offer comprehensive sex education to all teens,
free access to contraceptives, and a 12-month supply. None of
this is available in Alaska, yet Alaska has one of the highest
rates of rape and sexual assault in the country.
2:40:47 PM
CAROLINE MALSEED, Reverend, Church or the Holy Trinity, Juneau,
Alaska, said the Episcopal Church opposes abortion as a means of
birth control or family planning. However, since 1967 the church
has maintained its "unequivocal opposition to any legislation on
the part of the national or state government, which would
abridge or deny the right of individuals to reach informed
decisions about the termination of pregnancy and to enact upon
them." In 2018, the Episcopal Church called for women's
reproductive health and women's reproductive health procedures
to be treated like all other medical procedures. Any proposed
legislation must take special care to see that the individual
conscience is respected. She said there are no Biblical
prescription against abortion. Enforced pregnancy is a violation
of international law and is considered a war crime. Laws against
abortion do not prevent them, but result in unregulated and
illegal abortions and death by hemorrhage or sepsis and the risk
of suicide by desperate, isolated women.
2:44:08 PM
ROBB ARNOLD, representing self, Juneau, Alaska, said that
according to the U.S. Constitution, people have been endowed by
their creator with certain inalienable rights, life, liberty,
and the pursuit of happiness. He offered his view that
personhood starts at conception and the state should uphold the
U.S. Constitution.
2:45:52 PM
SARAH HENNEMANN, M.D., representing self, Palmer, Alaska, said
that as a family medicine physician, she has a unique window
into patients' lives. Her patients are burdened with the weight
of many difficult situations. She comes homes every day carrying
a little bit of their pain, sadness, and anxiety. As a
physician, she understands that teens have adult bodies, but the
frontal lobes of their brains are not completely formed until
the mid20s, so parents have a vital role in directing the paths
that teenagers take. The American Academy of Pediatrics has said
that parents understand the unique needs of their children and
should be the decision makers for their children's health care.
Parents should be at the very least aware that an abortion was
performed on a family member. She had a teen patient who almost
died due to delayed medical care because her parents were not
aware that their daughter had an abortion.
2:48:48 PM
WINDY PERKINS, representing self, Anchorage, Alaska, said the
topic is not necessarily debating abortion but is an attempt to
take some of the out-of-control power away from courts.
2:51:45 PM
MOIRA PYHALA, representing self, Soldotna, Alaska, said she is a
lifelong Alaskan who was born and raised on the Kenai Peninsula.
She knows the challenges many individuals face with their own
health care decisions. Alaska has many unsolved community health
concerns, including that Alaska has the highest rate of sexual
assault in the nation. She is one of many survivors of sexual
assault in Alaska. She is grateful that the assault did not
result in pregnancy. Others in her area have not been as
fortunate and have had forced births or unwanted pregnancies.
She cannot physically and emotionally imagine how her life would
have been altered if she had become pregnant without access to
abortion at 15. She would not have continued her education and
graduated from the University of Alaska Anchorage and become a
community organizer. SJR 13 does not end abortion. It just
supports ending safe and legal abortion. The last thing her
community and state need is young individuals like herself dying
because they are victims of assault and they cannot access their
constitutional right to abortion.
JONATHAN FISHER, representing self, Juneau, Alaska, said he and
his wife had three babies. When he came into the room during his
wife's pregnancies, each time the baby would get excited to hear
his voice. Not only is there life in the womb, but there is
cognitive life, he said. He objected to funding abortions with
his taxes.
2:56:05 PM
LUANN MCVEY, representing self, Juneau, Alaska, said she is a
retired teacher and she values human life. However, it is
important to bring a child into an environment where it is
wanted, cherished, and cared for. It is also important for a
mother to be cherished and cared for and have the choice of
conception. Controlling one's body and health is a human right
that should be protected in statute. She cannot imagine that
this kind of legislation would be considered if men conceived.
It is wrong for the state to force women to bring children into
world.
2:57:37 PM
CHAIR WILSON observed that over 100 people were waiting to
testify and that testimony would continue at a later date. He
urged people to send testimony to shss@akleg.gov.
CHAIR WILSON held SJR 13 in committee.
2:58:41 PM
There being no further business to come before the committee,
Chair Wilson adjourned the Senate Health and Social Services
Standing Committee at 2:58 p.m.