Asa Hutchinson Signs Abortion Restriction Bill

Planned Parenthood of the Heartland said Wednesday it was “extremely disappointed” that Gov. Asa Hutchinson signed into law a bill to require that a doctor be physically present when a woman takes an abortion-inducing pill. Also Wednesday, the Arkansas House approved bills to require the state Claims Commission to explain its decisions in writing and create a program for the licensure of community paramedics.

Senate Bill 53, now Act 139 of 2015, will require when an abortion-inducing drug such as RU-486 is administered, the doctor who prescribed or dispensed the drug must be physically present in the room with the patient. A doctor who violated the law would lose his or her license.

The measure’s sponsor, Sen. Missy Irvin, R-Mountain View, has said it will prevent the practice, not currently available in Arkansas, of doctors overseeing chemical abortions via Internet linkup.

Irvin, who opposes abortion, has called the measure “a reasonable bill that looks after the safety of the mother.”