A new Idaho law, signed Thursday by Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter, will provide better information about how many women are injured by abortions in Idaho each year.
State House Bill 638 establishes a new state reporting system to track abortion complications and other abortion-related data in Idaho, Fox News reports. The data, which also will include the woman’s age, race and number of children, will be collected by the state Department of Health & Welfare and published in an annual report.
Idaho Chooses Life celebrated Otter’s decision to sign the law.
“We believe this is landmark legislation because, in coming years, we will be able to learn how abortion affects women and girls in both the short-term and long-term,” the pro-life group said in an email to supporters. “For the first time we will not be dependent upon Planned Parenthood or the FDA to tell us what they want us to hear.”
The group said medical professionals and counselors also will be required to file a report to the state when they treat a woman for health problems related to abortion.
Here’s more from Fox News:
The legislation outlines a list of abortion complications — such as infection, blood clots and hemorrhaging — that providers, hospitals and clinics must report to the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare. Depression, anxiety and sleeping disorders also are on the list.
The laws that take effect July 1 align with a national trend among Republican-dominant statehouses seeking new ways to test the legal ability to restrict a woman’s right to terminate a pregnancy.
The state would compile the information for an annual report and make it available to the Legislature and the public, but identifying information would not be revealed.
Many other states have similar reporting requirements in place. These reports include important demographic data about women who have abortions, as well as complications resulting from the deadly procedure. Some reports also include the age of the unborn baby and the abortion method used.
Click here to sign up for pro-life news alerts from LifeNews.com
America does not have any national reporting requirements for abortion data. The Centers for Disease Control publishes an annual report on abortions, but the report is incomplete because data submission is voluntary. Some states provide limited data, while others — such as California — do not provide any information at all.
Earlier this week, Otter also signed a bill to require that abortion facilities tell women of the possibility that the abortion pill can be reversed and their unborn baby’s life saved.
