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Stitt Signs 3 Bills Aimed At Banning Abortion

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Gov. Kevin Stitt signed into law Monday three bills aimed at banning abortion in Oklahoma.

Taken together, House Bills 1102, 1904 and 2441 mean as of Nov. 1, only doctors board-certified in obstetrics and gynecology can perform the procedure, only after checking for a fetal heartbeat, and only in cases where a woman may die or suffer permanent impairment.

Board-certified OB/GYNs providing abortion care for any other reason would have their licenses suspended at least one year. If they don't check for a fetal heartbeat first, they would be guilty of murder under the new laws.

Doctors who are not board-certified OB/GYNs and perform an abortion would be guilty of a felony punishable by one to three years in prison. Again, if they don't check for a fetal heartbeat first, they would be guilty of murder. Many current providers are family practice physicians trained in abortion care.

Planned Parenthood Great Plains Votes Regional Manager of Public Policy and Organizing for Arkansas and Oklahoma Gloria Pedro said Oklahoma lawmakers continue to ignore policies that could reduce abortions, like expanded access to contraceptives, and they’re doing so while the COVID-19 pandemic is still a concern.

"At a time when people need economic relief and basic safety precautions, dismantling abortion access is cruel, dangerous and blatantly unjust," Pedro said.

Then-Governor Mary Fallin vetoed legislation similar to HB1102 in 2016 because it wouldn’t stand up to legal challenges. ACLU of Oklahoma Executive Director and Oklahoma Call for Reproductive Justice Co-Chair Tamya Cox-Touré said lobbying and timing are probably factors in Stitt signing HB1102.

"I think there’s an opportunity — a misguided opportunity — with Gov. Stitt thinking that this could potentially go to the Supreme Court. I think there’s a lot of reasons, but most importantly, we feel any person who supported these bills, any legislator who supported this bill really came from a place of putting politics over people," Cox-Touré said.

Cox-Touré and other advocates say banning abortion means officials are banning safe, legal abortion for those without means. They are evaluating strategies to challenge the new laws in court.

Republican lawmakers in the state have been clear banning abortion is among their top priorities. Stitt has said he will sign "all pro-life legislation" sent to him.

Matt Trotter joined KWGS as a reporter in 2013. Before coming to Public Radio Tulsa, he was the investigative producer at KJRH. His freelance work has appeared in the Los Angeles Times and on MSNBC and CNN.
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