Maine Senate Rejects Three Anti-Choice Bills

Augusta - The Maine Legislature protected a woman’s right to access the care she needs by rejecting three bills that would interfere with the ability to obtain a safe, legal abortion. The Senate followed the House by voting down all three bills.

The vote was 21 to 14 against LD 760, which would interfere with a woman’s right to choose to have an abortion, by scripting what doctors say to a woman seeking an abortion. Maine law already requires informed consent for every medical procedure.

The vote was 24 to 11 against LD 1339, which would repeal Maine’s successful adult involvement law and instead require strict parental consent before a minor could have an abortion. The bill would force minors to go to court or report their parents for abuse in order to bypass the strict parental consent mandate.

The vote was 20 to 15 against LD 1193, which seeks to establish a fetus as a legal entity separate and distinct from the woman who carries it for the purpose of recovering damages in civil actions. It seeks to convey legal status to a fetus, granting the fetus the legal rights to “heirs and an estate” and the right to sue under Maine’s probate code.

The following quotes can be attributed to members of the Maine Choice Coalition:

“The legislature recognized that these bills infringe on women’s personal rights to choose, invade the privacy of expectant women, and invoke unnecessary steps that do nothing to further the healthcare of women or improve the system that is now in place.” – Bets Brown, Public Policy Chair, American Association of University Women of Maine

“We are thrilled that the legislature upheld current law and rejected these three bad bills, all of which were aimed at undermining abortion rights. The government has no business intruding on a woman’s most personal health decisions.” – Jill Barkley, Public Policy Advocate, ACLU of Maine

"Current Maine law works. We commend our elected officials in Augusta for recognizing that women are the best people to make personal decisions about their own pregnancies, their health and their lives." George A. Hill, President, Family Planning Association of Maine

“We Grandmothers for Reproductive Rights each have experienced either personally or through the lives of those close to us difficulties and or threats to our health because of limited or non-existent access to quality reproductive health care in the past. Thankfully, we are a step closer to making sure Maine women won’t have to repeat these difficulties in their lives.” – Judy Kahrl, Grandmothers for Reproductive Rights

“This is good news. Maine already has laws that protect women’s privacy and their reproductive rights. We are pleased that the legislature saw fit, once again, to recognize that our current laws work and have worked for many years.” – Ruth Lockhart, executive director, Mabel Wadsworth Women’s Health Center

“Today our legislators joined us in saying that they trust Maine women and know that these decisions should be made by a woman and her doctor - not a woman, her doctor and the Maine Legislature." - Eliza Townsend, Executive Director, Maine Women’s Lobby

“Politicians should not be involved in a woman’s personal medical decisions about her pregnancy. Our legislators did the right thing by rejecting these bills.” – Eric Covey, Grassroots Organizer, Planned Parenthood of Northern New England