Springfield, IL (March 22, 2010) -- The governor of South Dakota has signed a bill that would require doctors to screen women before abortion to ensure that they are not being coerced.
Governor Dennis Daugaard signed the bill that requires a licensed physician to meet with a woman at least 72 hours before an abortion to assess her risk factors and ensure that she is not being coerced into the abortion. The woman must also receive counseling from a pregnancy center -- not a group that performs or refers for abortion -- on her options and available resources. An abortion can be scheduled by the physician only after these requirements have been fulfilled.
The law contains elements of the Elliot Institute's model legislation, which creates legal liability for abortion businesses who fail to screen women for coercion and for risk factors that put them at risk for psychological problems after abortion. The model legislation was passed in Nebraska last year.
Planned Parenthood of Minnesota, South Dakota and North Dakota is planning to file suit against the new law, which is set to take effect July 1.
Leslie Unruh, executive director of the Alpha Center, which is raising money to help defend the law, told the Rapid City Journal that "women in South Dakota will be safer because of the law." She said it allows women to learn about other options and resources instead of "only hearing about abortion" or being pushed into it "out of fear, panic or under duress, as is the case in many abortions."
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