Minnesota is in the process of cementing its status as a haven for patients from restrictive states who travel to the state to seek abortions — and to protect providers who serve them.
The state House passed a bill by a vote of 68 to 62 on Monday to prohibit enforcement in Minnesota of laws, subpoenas, judgments or extradition requests from other states against people who perform, perform or assist in abortions in Minnesota. The Senate version passed its first committee test last week.
The House’s lead author, Democratic Representative Esther Agbaje of Minneapolis, said at a news conference ahead of the debate that a good example of what supporters are concerned about is a Texas law that gives individuals the power to enforce strict restrictions on their state by allowing them to sue anyone who helps a patient get an abortion elsewhere.
Jamie Long, Democratic House Majority Leader from Minneapolis, said the bill is necessary because several states have introduced Texas-style legislation that could jeopardize Minnesota providers, as well as residents who could help relatives or friends who come to Minnesota for abortions just by picking them up at the airport.
“Before the Dobbs decision last summer, I often cared for patients from nearby states like the Dakotas or Wisconsin,” says Dr. Sarah Trexler, Chief of Medical Services for Planned Parenthood North Central States, which performs 70% of Minnesota’s abortions. . “But now for the first time I’m regularly taking care of patients from Texas, Alabama, Wyoming, Oklahoma, Louisiana, and the list goes on and on.”
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Like Planned Parenthood and other providers, Whole Woman’s Health of Minnesota in Bloomington has also seen a sharp increase in out-of-state patients, more than doubling from 2019 to 26% by 2022.
“The most notable change comes from Texas, where in 2019 we saw just 2 patients from that state to 96 from February 2022 to March 2023,” Amy Hagstrom Miller, president and CEO of Whole Woman’s Health Alliance, said in an email.
Democratic Minnesota State Representative Esther Agbaje speaks at a news conference on Monday, March 20, 2023 in St. Paul, Minnesota. The Minnesota House has passed a bill to prohibit the enforcement of other states’ laws, subpoenas, judgments, or extradition requests against people who perform, perform, or assist in abortions in Minnesota. (AP Photo/Steve Karnowski)
Democrats have made abortion rights one of their top priorities for the 2023 Minnesota Legislative Session. They won a one-seat majority in the Senate election in November while maintaining a tighter hold on the House to end up pro-choice majorities in both chambers. Democratic Gov. Tim Walz signed an expedited bill in January to enshrine abortion rights in state statutes protected by a 1995 Minnesota Supreme Court decision.
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Texas and Oklahoma allow individuals to sue people they believe helped someone get an abortion. Minnesota has already passed some protections that apply to those people under an executive order that Walz signed last June. And Democratic Attorney General Keith Ellison promised his office would not cooperate with other states seeking to prosecute women who come to Minnesota for abortions. Several other states, including California and Colorado, have also adopted safe harbor protections for patients traveling to have abortions, either by executive order or by law.
A more controversial bill making its way through the Minnesota House and Senate would repeal a long list of state statutes restricting abortion rights — such as a 24-hour waiting period and parental notification requirements — that a district judge ruled unconstitutional last July. It is intended to ensure that appeals courts cannot reinstate those restrictions.
Long hesitated about when that bill might come up for a vote in the House. When asked if supporters now have the votes to approve it, he replied: “We will have the votes when we bring it to the table.”
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Republican critics of the various bills argue that they have already left Minnesota with essentially no restrictions on abortion at all — at any stage of pregnancy. But their attempts to scale back the legislation and enforce some limits have all failed. Republican Peggy Scott, of Andover, said the bill passed Monday will give Minnesota a “black eye” by making it a destination and haven for people seeking to terminate their pregnancies.
“We’re going to reward breaking the law, we’re going to reward behavior that leads to felony convictions in other states. We’re going to say, ‘Come to Minnesota, we got you, we’re taking you.'” GOP Rep. Anne Neu Brindley said during the debate. “People, it’s wrong.”