Sec. 1. 22 MRSA §1598, sub-§1, as amended by PL 1993, c. 61, §2, is further amended to read:

1. Policy. It is the public policy of the State that the State not restrict a woman's exercise of her private decision to terminate a pregnancy before viability except as provided in section 1597-A. After viability an abortion may be performed only when it is necessary to preserve the life or health of the mother. The intact dilation and evacuation method of abortion may not be performed after viability unless, in the medical judgment of the attending physician, the abortion is necessary to preserve the life or health of the mother. It is also the public policy of the State that all abortions may be performed only by a physician.

Sec. 2. 22 MRSA §1598, sub-§2, ķA, as enacted by PL 1979, c. 405, §2, is amended to read:

A. "Abortion" means the intentional interruption of a pregnancy by the application of external agents, whether chemical or physical or by the ingestion of chemical agents with an intention other than to produce a live birth or to remove a dead fetus. "Abortion" includes partial birth abortion.

SUMMARY

This bill clarifies the definition of "abortion" to specifically state that it includes partial birth abortion. This change makes it clear that the state policy concerning post- viability abortions, prohibited except when the abortion is necessary to protect the life or health of the mother, applies to partial birth abortions.

The bill amends the policy statement to clarify that the use of the dilation and evacuation method of abortion after viability is restricted to only those situations in which the abortion is necessary to preserve the life or health of the mother.