Washington DC, United States.- The White House today proposed a new federal law to limit how law enforcement and state authorities access medical records to investigate women who flee their home states to seek abortions elsewhere.
The proposal, spurred by a series of abortion strikes across the country, comes as the White House grapples with a legal challenge to a commonly used abortion pill that could jeopardize access to care nationwide for the Friday.
Vice President Kamala Harris told reporters it is one of several new actions the administration is taking to deal with a wave of abortion restrictions that have been introduced since the US Supreme Court struck down the constitutional right to abortion. The administration is also launching a hotline for people to call with questions about prenatal, child and reproductive care.
“Women in the United States in particular have lived in a state of fear about what this means for them and the people they love,” Harris said.
The White House proposed law would prohibit health organizations from sharing personal medical records with authorities for investigations related to reproductive care in states where a woman can legally have an abortion. While these records are protected by federal privacy laws, healthcare providers and insurers may be required to turn over medical records with a court order.
Doctors across the country have raised concerns about protecting that medical information from authorities, said Melanie Fontes Rainer, director of the US Department of Health and Human Services’ office for civil rights, which proposed the rule change. The public can comment on the proposed rule for the next 60 days.
“We have had many conversations with providers, major medical associations and patient advocates about what they are seeing on the ground and how the federal government can be helpful in ensuring that medical records are kept private,” he said in a statement.
Since the US Supreme Court struck down the constitutional right to abortion last year, some women living in a sprawl of Southern and Midwestern states that have largely banned abortion now commute for hours to other states to get it legally.
The federal health agency’s new national phone number will provide information on prenatal, child and abortion care, as well as adoption, Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra announced Wednesday. Becerra did not provide a phone number with his ad.
The Biden administration is rushing to implement these new initiatives ahead of a pressing deadline imposed by a Texas judge that could revoke Food and Drug Administration approval of mifepristone, one of two drugs used in what is considered the most effective and safe way to perform a medical abortion.
Texas Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk’s order to remove the drug from the market will take effect Friday, unless another court intervenes. The Justice Department appealed the decision Monday. There is no precedent for an isolated judge to overturn FDA medical decisions.
Attorney General Merrick Garland said Wednesday that the judge’s decision could encourage others to use a similar method to challenge FDA approval of other drugs, drugs and vaccines.
“This could happen with any drug that Americans trust, no matter how essential it is and no matter when it was approved,” Garland said. Pharmaceutical companies filed a brief in support of the White House case Tuesday night, warning that the decision could have ripple effects on life-saving drugs.
Complicating matters further for the Biden administration: A competing court decision by a federal judge in Spokane, Washington, issued the same day, ordered federal officials not to hinder access to the drug in at least 17 states where Democrats sued to keep the availability of the drug intact. The issue is likely to be decided by the Supreme Court.
