Signed by Governor Pete Ricketts

Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to pass a bill prohibits second trimester abortions.

Highlights:

• Prohibits any individual from purposely performing or attempting to perform a dismemberment abortion unless necessary due to a medical emergency (Sec. 3).

• Specifies that an individual accused of the aforementioned provision shall be authorized to appeal the decision to the Board of Medicine and Surgery (Sec. 3).

• Exempts any woman on whom the abortion is performed from being liable for the procedure as well as any pharmacist, nurse, secretary, receptionist, or other employee or agent who is not the physician but acts at the direction of a physician or fills a prescription (Sec. 3).

• Defines “dismemberment abortion” as an abortion that extracts or dismembers the fetus through the uterus through the use of clamps, grasping forceps, tongs, scissors, or similar instruments (Sec. 2).

• Specifies that dismemberment abortions shall not include an abortion in which suction is used to extracting a fetus into a collection container or to remove the remains of a miscarriage (Sec. 2).

• Prohibits any attorney fees from being assessed against the women who had an abortion performed (Sec. 6).

• Specifies that the intentional performance of an unlawful dismemberment abortion shall be a Class IV felony (Sec. 7).

Full Bill Text