Bill to prohibit drug-induced abortions advances in Wyoming Legislature

CHEYENNE – A bill that would outlaw a handful drugs from being used in abortion procedures was advanced by a legislative committee Wednesday afternoon, despite concerns from some who testified about the constitutionality of the proposal.

Senate File 133, which the committee advanced by a 4-1 vote, would prohibit the use of several drugs, including mifepristone and misoprostol, that are commonly used for early-stage abortions. The bill’s primary sponsor, Sen. Tim Salazar, R-Riverton, told the Senate Labor, Health and Social Services Committee that he believes those chemical abortions are “cruel and unusual.”

“I believe that we, as a state in Wyoming, have a responsibility to decide not only what we will and will not allow in the procedures of how you have an abortion, but also what procedures are either dangerous or gruesome,” Salazar said. “For the child, which I believe is a human life in that womb, chemical abortion is, in my opinion, a barbaric death sentence carried out by chemically induced starvation.”

During the meeting, several doctors spoke in opposition to the bill, raising questions about its potential consequences. Katie Noyes, a family physician based in Jackson, told the committee that the proposal would not reduce the demand for abortions, but simply shift where and how those procedures are carried out.

Read more: https://www.wyomingnews.com/wyomingbusinessreport/industry_news/government_and_politics/bill-to-prohibit-drug-induced-abortions-advances-in-wyoming-legislature/article_5b99cb00-8298-11eb-86f0-03e92a00f123.html