Jared Daniels
Staff Writer
A new abortion bill, HB0197, sponsored by Rep. Richard Tass, made its way into the Wyoming legislature and was passed.
The new 48 hour wait for patients seeking an abortion will become mandatory July 1, 2020 due to its passage. This mandatory time period will only effect nonemergency abortion procedures.
Guttmacher Institute stated that 96% of women in Wyoming did not have access to an abortion clinic within their county and 38% had to travel outside their county in order to recieve an abortion. Teton county contains the only two abortion clinics in Wyoming. The new bill creates another appointment date in which many Wyoming women will have to travel to reach.
“Having to go back forty-eight hours later can prove to be a substantial obstacle for some women,” said Melissa Alexander, a professor of law at the University of Wyoming.
Alexander said these wait time laws have become fairly common in the United States as 27 other states have adopted them.
The National Bureau of Economic Research conducted a study after the passage of a 48 hour mandatory wait period bill passed in Tennessee, similar to the bill that recently entered legislation. In this study, they found the bill caused problems for women in areas of work, school, transportation and child care as two appointments are being made instead of one. This study also found a payment increase for the abortion up to $929.
Public funding for abortions in Wyoming is illegal unless the pregnancy is resulted from sexual assault or incest. All payments and appointments for abortion will be payed through insurance and out of pocket if not adhering to one of these exeptions.
HB0197 also redefines the law that the abortion shall not be preformed after viability, when a fetus can survive outside the uterus, unless the woman’s life is in danger. According to the bill, an appropriate medical judgement determines when a life is in danger.
Also included in this bill is a set of punishments for going against the 48 hour waiting period. No more than a 14 year sentence would be given to any person who violates the bill. For a physician, no more than 10 year imprisonment would be awarded from this bill. The bill also states it is not imposing criminal liability upon the patient.
“When you start talking about healthcare providers facing a felony, punishable with up to ten years imprisonment, I think that has independent risks and challenges,” said Alexander.
For information about abortion and other resources call the National Abortion Federation Hotline at 1-800-772-9100. The hotline is open 7 a.m. – 11 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m – 5 p.m. on weekends.
