State lawmakers want more time to address concerns over legislation that bans sex-selective abortions in South Dakota. House Bill 1162 makes it illegal for a doctor to perform an abortion based on the sex of the baby, and doing so is a Class 6 felony.
Opponents argue it targets Asian women and attempts to make obtaining any abortion more difficult. Abbie Peterson with NARAL South Dakota says HB 1162 isn’t the way to combat gender discrimination.
“This bill is unenforceable. There is no way a doctor can know every thought in a woman’s mind or every motive behind her decisions. By prohibiting a pregnant woman to have an abortion either solely or partly due to the sex of the fetus puts the provider in an impossible situation. This bill leaves physicians vulnerable to lawsuits, even though a third-party cannot possibly know all considerations that have entered a woman’s mind during her decision making process,” Peterson says.
Peterson says this bill will jeopardize doctor-patient communication and confidentiality.
Proponents of the measure say without this legislation, it’s legal to obtain a sex-selective abortion in South Dakota.
Members of the Senate Health and Human Services committee question the language of the bill and only putting liability on the doctor, rather than the mother for a sex-selective abortion. An amendment removes the possibility of a civil lawsuit, and the bill was deferred to Wednesday for more discussion.