Florida is launching a new pregnancy and parenting website that will not include any information on abortion access. (Photo by John Fedele/Getty Images)
Abortion-related bills continue to be introduced and debated in legislatures across the country, especially in states where the procedure is already banned. It can be hard to monitor them all, so States Newsroom’s Reproductive Rights Today team tracks certain bills that could become law in their respective states in a biweekly legislative roundup. Depending on the partisan makeup of a state’s legislature and other state government officials, some bills have a higher chance of passing and becoming law than others.
Florida
With few exceptions, abortion is now banned after six weeks of pregnancy in Florida, before many individuals know they are pregnant.
House Bill 415: Gov. Ron DeSantis signed this bill into law to create a state pregnancy and parenting resources website that will include anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers and will not include any information on abortion access. Florida health agencies will maintain the site, but it will be created by a third-party company and will launch by July 2025, Florida Phoenix reported. The site will cost $466,200 and include information about maternal health, prenatal and postnatal services, and adoption. Democrats have criticized the idea as merely a tool for anti-abortion groups, since the state already has a website with information for those who are pregnant.
Status: Law, signed by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis
Sponsor: Republican Rep. Berny Jacques
Louisiana
Nearly all abortions are banned in Louisiana.
Senate Bill 276: A new law categorizing mifepristone and misoprostol as “controlled dangerous substances” is headed to Republican Gov. Jeff Landry’s desk. He is expected to sign it, according to the Louisiana Illuminator. The two drugs are used to terminate a pregnancy before 10 weeks and to treat miscarriages. Louisiana is the first state to criminalize the drugs. After Oct. 1, anyone who possesses either medication faces up to five years in prison, and those distributing the drugs face up to 10 years. The penalties do not apply to a pregnant person who takes the medication. More than 200 Louisiana doctors asked lawmakers not to proceed with the action.
Status: Passed both chambers, awaiting action by Republican Gov. Jeff Landry
Sponsor: Republican Sen. Thomas Pressly
House Bill 833: This bill would shield doctors, clinics and other health care providers from lawsuits and criminal prosecution if embryos created during the IVF process were unintentionally lost. After passing the House by a wide margin, the Senate passed it with only one “no” vote, and it is now awaiting final approval in the House, Louisiana Illuminator reported. The Senate added an amendment to the bill that blocks the transfer of embryos created through IVF to an out-of-state storage facility “for the purpose of destruction,” which may occur because the embryos are nonviable or no longer needed, according to the Illuminator. Louisiana is the only state that does not allow IVF patients to dispose of embryos in state. It’s unclear if that amendment would be enforceable or if it threatens the bill’s final passage.
Advocates also say the bill does not adequately shield providers from criminal liability, and it still characterizes embryos as human beings, which is the language that some IVF providers in Alabama said forced them to stop providing the service because of liability concerns. The Illuminator also reported that Republican Gov. Jeff Landry has not committed to signing the legislation if it comes to his desk, saying only through a spokesman that he is reviewing it alongside many other bills passed by the legislature.
Status: Passed both chambers, awaiting final approval in the House
Sponsor: Republican Rep. Paula Davis
Michigan
Abortion is legal in Michigan without gestational age restrictions.
Senate Bill 767: Despite opposition from Republican lawmakers, Democrats passed an appropriation bill for the state health department that includes a provision to shield the medical records of those who seek reproductive health care in Michigan from out-of-state investigations where the procedure may be banned, Michigan Advance reported. Six other states, including Colorado, New York, Massachusetts, California, Vermont and Washington already have similar shield laws in place.
Status: Passed the House and Senate
Sponsor: Democratic Sen. Sylvia Santana
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