Kansas residents voted in 2022 to protect abortion access up to 22 weeks of pregnancy, but a new law requires physicians in the state to publicly report a patient's reason for choosing the procedure and also disclose certain personal details about them.
The law requires physicians and medical facilities in the state to make these reports twice each year to the secretary of health and environment, ABC News reported May 21. Now, a group of providers, backed by the Center for Reproductive Rights, has filed a lawsuit against the state claiming the new law violates privacy protections for patients seeking abortions. It also requires a patient to disclose if they were a victim of harm prior to receiving the care.
Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly vetoed the bill, refusing to sign the legislation in April and stating in a letter, "There is no valid medical reason to force a woman to disclose to the legislature if they have been a victim of abuse, rape or incest prior to obtaining an abortion." "There is also no valid reason to force a woman to disclose to the legislature why she is seeking an abortion."
The legislation was requested to be introduced by an anti-abortion group called Kansas Right to Life.
The Center for Reproductive Rights requested this push against the new law be added to an ongoing case already filed in the state in June 2023 that seeks a legal injunction on other abortion requirements in the state, the Kansas Reflector reported.