Kan. Legislature Sends Abortion Clinic Regulation Bill to Governor

April 28, 2011 — The Kansas Senate on Wednesday voted 24-15 to approve a bill (SB 36) that would require the state's three abortion clinics to be inspected twice a year and authorizes the Kansas Department of Health and Environment to write standards for buildings and equipment, issue annual licenses for abortion clinics, fine clinics for non-compliance and go to court to close clinics, Wichita Eagle reports (Gruver, Wichita Eagle, 4/28). Under the bill, at least one of the two annual inspections would be unannounced and it requires at least two people -- one of which must be a woman -- to be in the room during a pelvic exam or abortion, the Star reports. Surgeons must also have admitting privileges at an accredited hospital within 30 miles of the clinic (Cooper, Kansas City Star, 4/28).

The bill also increases regulation of medication abortion by requiring that all pills be taken in the presence of a physician and encourages patients to return to the physician office between 12 and 18 days after taking both pills (Wichita Eagle, 4/28).

The bill, already approved by the Kansas House, now goes to Gov. Sam Brownback (R), who is expected to sign it into law.

Some lawmakers, including Senate Majority Leader Jay Emler (R), opposed the bill, saying that stricter regulations should be applied to all surgical centers regardless of the procedures being performed, not just abortion clinics (Kansas City Star, 4/28).

Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid-Missouri said that there has been no evidence of safety problems at any of the state's three abortion clinics and that physicians who provide abortions are licensed by the state and regulated by the Kansas Board of Healing Arts. According to a statement from the organization, the bill "creates a multitude of onerous regulations for abortion providers that do not apply to any other physicians or office-based surgical procedures, including those with complication rates 10 times higher than abortion" and is intended to "limit access to abortion care by forcing the closure of women's health centers" (Wichita Eagle, 4/28).