Gubernatorial candidate Sherman calls NH abortion law a danger to women

Oct. 22—Democratic N.H. Sen. Tom Sherman, who is trying to unseat Republican Gov. Chris Sununu on Nov. 8, told The Sentinel's editorial board Friday he doesn't think New Hampshire should have any restrictions on abortion.

Sherman, a 65-year-old gastroenterologist from Rye, said abortions should be like other medical procedures performed by doctors in consultation with patients, including colonoscopies, a recommended cancer-screening test.

"As a doctor I'd never say to a man, 'Wait a second, we need a law that prohibits you from having a colonoscopy unless you've had a rigid proctoscopy in advance,' " Sherman said.

"But that's what we're saying to women. 'We don't trust you to make your own health care decisions, so we're going to solve a problem that doesn't exist in New Hampshire, and we're going to take away your rights and put your life at risk at the same time.' "

Sununu, 47, of Newfields, signed into law last year Republican-backed legislation banning abortions after 24 weeks of pregnancy except in medical emergencies, defined as threatening life or major bodily function. This year, the N.H. Legislature added fatal fetal anomalies as a second exception.

Sherman said that when a woman faces a profound health-endangering but not necessarily life-threatening complication later in pregnancy, the law requires her "to wait until she is sick enough to actually have definitive intervention [an abortion]."

Other states, including Massachusetts, have a broader exception that simply refers to the woman's health, he noted.

In New Hampshire, a lawyer may need to be brought in to assess legal liability, Sherman said.

"What happens is that if you go too early in New Hampshire now, you have a felony conviction on the medical team. If you go too late, the woman and the fetus will die or could die."

Testimony before the N.H. Legislature showed that elective abortions after 24 weeks of pregnancy are not being done in the state to begin with, Sherman said.

The Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonprofit organization focusing on national health issues, said abortions at 21 weeks or more of pregnancy represent 1 percent of all abortions in the U.S. and typically arise from fetal anomalies, danger to the life of the woman or barriers to care earlier in pregnancy.

Sherman said that if elected, he would work with the Legislature to repeal New Hampshire's abortion law.

He said he would also seek to enshrine abortion rights in state law, similar to the constitutional protections for abortion that were afforded under Roe v. Wade, which found that a woman may choose to have an abortion until a fetus is viable. The high court overturned that landmark decision in June, leaving abortion regulations up to the states.

Sherman also said New Hampshire's abortion law makes it much harder to recruit obstetricians to the state at a time when it is facing a lack of medical providers in general.

Labor shortages in medicine and other fields can be addressed by boosting career and technical education and providing better financial incentives for New Hampshire students to attend in-state colleges, Sherman said.

On other issues, Sherman:

Touted his $35 million plan to spur residential development, which would come on top of Sununu's $100 million plan to boost housing.

Called for boosting weatherization programs to reduce power utilization, while expanding New Hampshire's portfolio of energy sources, including wind and solar, which he said would help reduce utility costs.

Urged improved mental health services, which he said would also help people with concurrent substance use disorder. "Failing to treat these illnesses, mental health and substance use, is driving other problems, whether it's crime or homelessness."

Said he supports repealing New Hampshire's so-called "divisive concepts" law, which limits the ways in which teachers can discuss discrimination, and called for more investment in public education in general.

Said he favors legalizing recreational use of marijuana by adults as a way of better controlling access to the drug. "A well-regulated industry where we are capturing the tax dollars is what I would favor with a really strong emphasis on making sure any marketing or availability is not targeting anyone under 21."

Rick Green can be reached at rgreen@keenesentinel.com or 603-355-8567.