Arizona Passes Extensive Anti-Abortion Bill Further Challenging Abortion Rights Throughout the Country

Arizona passed an extensive anti-abortion bill into law on April 28, 2021, placing new restrictions in terms of abortions on medical providers, state universities, and the use of public funds. After signing Senate Bill 1457, Arizona Governor Doug Ducey stated, "we will continue to prioritize protecting life in our preborn children, and this legislation goes a long way in protecting real human lives."

The new law now makes it a class six felony for medical providers to perform abortions solely because of a genetic abnormality such as Down syndrome or cystic fibrosis. This is in addition to the current policy of a class three felony for performing an abortion based on the sex or race of the child.

In Arizona, a class three felony can lead to a two-and-a-half-year to seven-year sentence. Other examples of class three felonies are residential burglary, assault with a deadly weapon, and auto theft. A class six felony’s standard sentencing is six to 18 months, with examples of similar violations including witness tampering, possession of drug paraphernalia, and theft of property worth between $1,000- $2,000.

In its “personhood” provision of the bill, civil rights are now conferred on the fetus at any stage of development. Democrats argue that this provision paves the way to allow for criminal charges against women who have an abortion, regardless of the reason. The bill also adds a new mandate requiring fetal remains to be buried or cremated, which the Arizona Legislature stated: “give[s] value to the unborn.” For surgical abortions, the woman has the right to determine the method and location for the final disposition of the fetus’ bodily remains.

The bill also allows for the father, when married to the mother at the time of the abortion, to sue the mother for aborting the fetus due to genetic issues. Additionally, a maternal grandparent, when the woman is under 18 years of age, can sue the mother for those same reasons.

Senate Bill 1457 also prohibits a manufacturer, supplier, or physician from sending abortion-inducing drugs through any mail or delivery service. This policy change comes just one month after the U.S. Food and Drug Association announced women seeking an abortion pill would not be required to visit a doctor’s office during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Photo Source: Arizona reproductive rights groups march to support a veto of SB 1457. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin) Under the new law, public education institutions such as state universities are now prohibited from performing abortions or providing a referral for an abortion unless the mother’s life is in jeopardy. Public money at the state or local level cannot be used in connection with research on abortions or even embryo transfers. However, it does not restrict the areas of scientific research in the use of nuclear transfers or cloning techniques to produce molecules, DNA, non-human embryos, or tissue. In addition, the state or any local government is prohibited from entering into a contract or any commercial transaction with an abortion provider or their affiliates.

In his tenure, Governor Ducey has never vetoed an anti-abortion piece of legislation. This current bill was sponsored by Republican state Senator Nancy Barto who was moved to draft the bill because she was “deeply saddened” that children with genetic abnormalities are discriminated against.

Democratic state Senator Kirsten Engel opposed the bill stating it “targets women who have a fetal abnormality of some type, and these decisions are made after a pretty long and emotional process.”

Arizona is just one of many states in recent months to pass stricter anti-abortion legislation. A 2021 Guttmacher Institute study found that 2021 is on track to be “the most damaging antiabortion state legislative session in a decade – and perhaps ever.” From January 1 – April 29, 2021, 536 abortion restrictions were introduced in 46 states; of those, 61 abortion restrictions passed into law across 13 states.

In the most severe, Arkansas and Oklahoma have passed near-total bans on abortions. In Arkansas, Governor Asa Hutchinson signed the Unborn Child Protection Act on March 9, and in Oklahoma, Governor Kevin Stitt signed three bills on April 26: House Bills 2441, 1904, and 1102.

On the other side of the issue, Hawaii, New Mexico, and Virginia have all passed laws in recent months further expanding abortion access within their states. Hawaii, in House Bill 576, now allows some nurses to perform abortions. New Mexico Governor Michell Lujan Grishman repealed certain abortion restrictions in Senate Bill 10. Virginia Governor Ralph Northam signed a bill into law that lifts the state’s ban on abortion coverage with state health insurance plans.