(C) Daily Montanan This story was originally published by Daily Montanan and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Bill codifying abortion rights in Montana state law gets first hearing – Daily Montanan [1] ['Nicole Girten', 'More From Author', '- February'] Date: 2023-02-14 Rep. Lee Deming, R-Laurel, asked bill sponsor Rep. Laurie Bishop, D-Livingston, a question during a hearing on her bill: “Are fetuses human beings?” The bill would codify the right to abortion in state law, and Bishop responded that defining fetuses wasn’t addressed, but was based on someone’s personal, religious conscience. Deming followed up: “Am I a human being?” Questions surrounding viability of a fetus came up during the hearing on House Bill 432, which would codify abortion in state law and repeal legislation from 2021 that restricts abortion. Abortion is currently legal up to the point of viability in Montana. The Montana Constitution protects the right to privacy, and the 1999 Montana Supreme Court decision in Armstrong vs. State protected a patient’s right to medical privacy, including abortion. HB 432 received an equal number of proponents and opponents during its first hearing Monday. It isn’t likely to advance this session with Republicans holding a supermajority, but the sponsor argued it would bring clarity to the legal situation in Montana. However, the bill drew fierce opposition from the Montana Family Foundation. In 2021, the legislature passed a number of bills that restrict abortion, and litigation has ensued. “​​This bill reflects where we are at this moment and is intended to clarify the current legal landscape in Montana,” said Bishop before the House Judiciary Committee. But Jeff Laszloffy, with the Montana Family Foundation, characterized the proposed legislation as “the most radical all encompassing piece of pro abortion legislation ever to be introduced in this body in the entire history of the Montana legislature.” Opponents also said there are two patients involved in every abortion. “This bill does not address the rights of the baby,” said Robin Sertell, who described herself as a survivor of three abortion attempts. “Do I look like a clump of cells today? That clump of cells has gotten bigger, just like you.” This move to codify abortion in Montana comes in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court decision last summer in Dobbs vs. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which overturned the nearly 50- year federal precedent for abortion protection in Roe vs. Wade. In the meantime, Republicans are moving forward with at least one bill that may have more success getting Gov. Greg Gianforte’s signature. Senate Bill 154 would state abortion is not part of the Montana Constitution’s privacy protections, and it passed the Senate. There’s also a bill from House Judiciary Chairwoman Amy Regier, R-Kalispell, House Bill 303, which would allow medical staff to object to performing procedures, including abortion. The bill passed the House last week. A bill to provide a religious exemption to abortion in the first and second trimesters of pregnancy was introduced by Rep. Ed Stafman, D- Bozeman, and is scheduled to be heard in the House Judiciary Committee on Friday. That bill would allow religiously-affiliated, private healthcare organizations to deny abortion or abortion related support to patients based on moral objections. Last summer, Gianforte publicly requested the state Supreme Court revisit the Armstrong decision in light of the Dobbs decision. This bill would gut Chapter 20 of the Montana Code Annotated which establishes provisions for abortion, including: -The Montana Abortion Control Act: which in part finds the abortion of a viable person is an infringement of that person’s rights. -The Woman’s Right-to-Know Act: which requires every woman who is considering an abortion receive complete information on alternatives -The Offense of Partial Birth Act: which does not apply to women whose life is in danger. -The Parental Consent for Abortion Act of 2013: which requires parental or legal guardian consent for a minor to receive an abortion. -The Montana Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act: which bans abortions at 20 or more weeks. -The Montana Abortion-Inducing Drug Risk Protocol Act: which in part requires informed consent for using drugs involved in induced an abortion and prohibits providing them those drugs on school grounds. -The Prohibition of Coverage of Abortion Services in Qualified Health Plans During questioning, Rep. SJ Howell, D-Missoula, asked Martha Fuller, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood, what the impact of eliminating the laws outlined in the bill would be. “It would actually maintain the current status quo of access to abortion because the items that are being repealed are presently enjoined and unenforceable,” Fuller said. Laszloffy argued that characterization was incorrect, telling the press following the hearing that several of the bills going through the courts are still in play. The bill would also permit abortion providers to give human sexuality instruction in schools, a practice that stopped in 2021. Additionally, it would allow the Department of Public Health and Human Services to do contracted work with clinics that perform “non federally qualified abortions.” Federal funds can’t be used for abortions outside of rape, incest or if the pregnancy threatens the life of the mother. In arguing against the bill, Majority Leader Rep. Sue Vinton, R-Billings, listed all the abortion related legislation that would be eliminated in the bill, as included in the title. “Abortion and miscarriage are not the same,” Vinton said. “Abortion is not birth control. This is 2023, there is birth control, available low cost or free, to anyone who seeks it. We can do better.” Proponents included abortion providers in the state, the ACLU of Montana, the Montana Human Rights Network and the League of Women Voters. Opponents included Restore Liberty, Montanans for Limited Government and Students for Life Action. “Our bodies are not wards of the state,” said proponent Cara Wilder. “No one’s private healthcare decisions, men or women, should be decided by politicians in Helena.” Proponent Ann Angus, who works with Montana Family Planning but came representing herself, talked about her own abortion experience, one she described as a wanted pregnancy where her baby’s body suffered catastrophic deformities to his renal system, making his body “not compatible with life.” “I could continue the pregnancy and watch my son slowly die in the NICU or I could have an abortion to end the pregnancy,” she said. “I chose to let my son pass in peace, warm and loved and held within me.” She said she was 26 weeks along and had to travel out of state to access care. “As heartbreaking as it is, sometimes there is no happy ending in any of the options,” she said. 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