California MDs prescribing abortion pills to out-of-state patients may get new protections

California doctors or pharmacists who prescribe or dispense abortion pills to out-of-state patients would have new legal protections under a provision recently proposed in the Golden State.

The new bill, SB345, would prevent healthcare providers who are legally performing their jobs in California from facing prosecution in another state or being extradited — a growing concern as more states move to criminalize abortion and other reproductive healthcare.

The proposal would protect against criminal or civil actions taken against health providers, and also allow those providers to sue someone trying to prevent such abortion care.

State Sen. Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley) filed the bill Friday after hearing from doctors and other providers that they were worried about potential legal ramifications for providing abortion pills to patients in states such as Texas and Idaho — where abortion and abortion pills are criminalized or banned. She said many California doctors continued to work with patients who might have relocated to attend college, fulfill a work rotation or even moved permanently.

“I’m trying to protect our healthcare practitioners so they can do their jobs, without fear,” Skinner said Friday. She said the bill, if passed, would “protect those practitioners in California who are acting in California and following California’s laws.”

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