South Dakota passes bill further restricting access to medication abortions

The bill, which passed the GOP-majority state House along party lines last week, now heads to Noem for her signature.

Current state law allows for the medication abortion process to begin 72 hours “after the physician physically and personally meets with the pregnant mother,” except in medical emergencies, and usually only requires one more visit to a licensed facility to receive the necessary drugs for the process.

The legislation, like the state rule, would require that women receive both drugs used in a medication abortion — mifepristone and misoprostol — in person at a licensed abortion facility, and bar them from receiving the pills in the mail.

A medication abortion, also called a medical abortion, is a nonsurgical procedure effective until about 10 weeks into a pregnancy. It involves taking the two drugs mifepristone and misoprostol one or two days apart and women are typically given both drugs in the same visit to their doctor or at a clinic.

They take the mifepristone pill at a clinic and are instructed to take the misoprostol pill at home a day or two later.

Under the legislation, women in South Dakota will effectively be required to make an additional visit to a licensed abortion facility for a medication abortion.

The bill would also make it a Class 6 felony for a person practicing medicine without a state license to prescribe the drugs for a medication abortion. A Class 6 felony carries a penalty of up to two years and/or a $4,000 fine.

The legislation will also require physicians to report to the Department of Health any complications that require medical follow-ups, what the required follow-up care was, the facility where the follow-up appointment was held, and if the pregnant woman was sex-trafficked.

The bill also amends the law so medical abortion does not mean a “procedure for the management of a miscarriage.”

“Unfortunately, it appears that a political agenda had an impact on the demise of this bill,” Republican state Rep. Steve Haugaard, who sponsored the failed bill, told CNN in an email.

Haugaard, who is challenging Noem in the GOP primary for governor, voted to pass Noem’s bill out of the House.

“When it comes to protecting life, I support legislation that seeks to do that and I do not cast my votes based upon the origin of a given bill,” he told CNN.

Republican lawmakers in mostly GOP-led states, such as Alabama and Iowa, have been pushing legislation banning or restricting medication abortion.