Democrats advance Gov. Mills' bill to expand abortion access in Maine

Jun. 9—Democrats pushed Gov. Janet Mills' later-in-pregnancy abortion bill through committee over heated Republican opposition Friday in an unscheduled 7-3 vote.

The bill, L.D. 1619, would allow abortions with a doctor's approval after the 24-week window, which is typically when a fetus becomes viable outside the womb. Current law allows post-viability abortions only when the life or health of the mother is at risk. In response to Republican concerns about the bill opening the door to third-trimester abortions on demand, Rep. Matt Moonen, D-Portland, introduced an amendment Friday that requires the approving physician to apply the applicable standard of care when making their professional judgement.

The Maine Medical Association has warned lawmakers against trying to write a law that dictates how a medical professional should handle complicated healthcare issues because every medical field is always evolving and every patient's situation is unique. Instead, the MMA has urged lawmakers to rely on the judgment of the professional licensing board that polices the industry to police the matter of whether a doctor has violated the "standard of care" by performing unnecessary last-minute abortions.

While the substance of such a significant change to the state's abortion law was sure to stoke emotions on the Judiciary Committee, which often deals with some of the most contentious political issues before the Legislature. But lawmakers also fought over the way the bill has been handled, from the late reveal of the bill's actual language to the amount of time that citizens got to comment on the bill during public hearing to the scheduling of the committee work session on the bill.

Republicans got a 90-minute notice that the work session that was suspended on Thursday night was to resume on Friday at 11 a.m. As a result, none of the people who had sat around the Capitol for most of Thursday waiting to observe or answer lawmakers questions about the proposed bill were there. Thursday night's work session had to be suspended because too many House members were leaving the room to take roll call votes on other matters during that chamber's marathon session.

Sen. Eric Brakey, R-Auburn, accused Democrats of trying to sneak the hearing and a vote in at a time when many Republican committee members couldn't attend. He and two Republican members walked out of the cramped committee room Friday morning in protest and in hopes they could stop the hastily called work session — without them the committee wouldn't have a quorum and couldn't vote on the bill — but Senate President Troy Jackson, D-Allagash, appointed a Democratic Senator who was in the building to fill in for an absent Democrat, giving them a quorum.

That same-day appointee, Sen. Jill Duson, D-Portland, told lawmakers that she may be new to the committee, but she was not new to this issue. She later voted in favor of Mills' bill.

The bill now goes to the Revisor's Office for language reviews before heading to the House and Senate for floor votes as soon as next week.

The bill is one of the highest profile bills to be heard by the Legislature this year, in part because it is a governor's bill but also because it drew thousands of abortion opponents out to a 19-hour public hearing that didn't conclude until after dawn. If this bill becomes law, Maine will join seven other states that allow later-in-pregnancy abortions for reasons other than a mother's imminent medical risk. Supporters say it would mark Maine as a abortion access defender in a post-Roe era while opponents call it an extreme law that would make Maine an abortion destination.

The bill has been a legislative priority for Mills' second term in office. She campaigned on a promise to leave Maine's existing abortion law alone, but changed her mind after she heard heartbreaking stories of Maine women who had to leave the state to obtain post-viability abortions due to lethal fetal abnormalities. Republicans claim she reneged on her campaign promise, but Mills said voters elected her knowing she was a staunch defender of abortion access.

Abortion rights advocacy groups applauded the committee vote on Friday.

"This bill will make sure no Mainer has to leave their family and trusted medical providers and endure unnecessary physical, emotional or financial harm just to receive the medical care they need," said Nicole Clegg, interim CEO of Planned Parenthood of Northern New England. "Opponents of this bill have been vocal in their position, but their arguments are based on their personal beliefs and, personal beliefs shouldn't dictate the decisions medical professionals make with their patients."

Staff Writer Emma Kilbride contributed to this story.