Healthcare Professionals Not Authorized to Perform Abortions
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Current Status House Bills 4109 – 4116 were introduced on February 15, 2023, and were referred to the House Health Policy Committee. Description This bill package outlines which healthcare professionals are not allowed to authorize an abortion in relation to section 28 of article I of the Michigan Constitution (Prop 3): dentists, dermatologists, podiatrists, chiropractors, optometrists, midwives, doulas, massage therapists, and athletic trainers. Background The language of section 28 of article I of the Michigan Constitution (Prop 3) states that “an attending health care professional” may determine if an abortion is medically necessary to protect the life or physical or mental health of the pregnant woman. Previously, only a licensed physician could perform an abortion, and only a physician could determine if an abortion was necessary to preserve the woman’s life, health or mental health. The list of healthcare professionals outlined in Michigan law is quite extensive, including many professions who have nothing to do with abortion or who’ve had no training on abortion included as a part of their educational background or licensing requirements. History Since 1846, Michigan had a law on the books stating all abortions are illegal, except to save the life of the mother. After Roe v. Wade was handed down by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1973, Michigan’s Supreme Court construed Michigan’s abortion law to be partially enforceable including the portion which bans post-viable abortions on healthy babies with healthy moms, and the prohibition against non-physicians performing abortions. This court decision also limited the decision-making authority of whether a post-viable abortion was necessary to the attending physician. Prop 3 expanded that decision making authority to any “attending healthcare professional” which includes numerous licensed medical providers who are not doctors. |