Why Florida might sue Maine over abortion, transgender health care shield law. What to know
Florida's attorney general is one among many from red states across the country threatening Maine with legal action as the New England state considers a shield law that would protect those seeking abortions and health care from criminal repercussions in Florida.
As more Republican states have taken action to limit or altogether ban abortion access and transgender health care, Democratic Party-led states see shield laws as a way to protect those seeking those services away from home, according to according to the Guttmacher Institute, an abortion rights advocacy group.
Florida is now among the states unhappy with Maine's plans to prevent those seeking abortions and gender affirming care up north to face legal repercussions from the Sunshine State, saying that Maine's legislation is an "ill-considered attempt to influence and intimidate" Florida officials.
Maine's law passed the state's House of Representatives earlier this month after debates, the Maine Morning Star reported. The bill's passage quickly drew the ire of many red states who see it as a direct affront to their own policies.
More: A year after the fall of Roe v. Wade, abortion access is reshuffled on state lines
What are abortion and transgender shield laws like Maine's LD 227?
Shield laws like the one currently being considered in Maine are designed to protect patients from legal action taken in other states.
For instance, if abortion were to become nearly outright banned in Florida — as is the case in over a dozen states since the overturning of Roe v. Wade, Floridians may seek to end pregnancies in more hospitable states for the procedure such as Maine.
Laws like LD 227 would mean both healthcare providers and patients are not required under Maine law to cooperate if lawsuits are filed or if law enforcement from their home state attempt to subpoena or extradite them on potential criminal charges for seeking that care elsewhere. Currently, shield laws are on the books in 11 states while similar governor-issued executive orders are in place three others, according to Movement Advancement Project, an LGBTQ rights organization.
Why is Florida threatening over another state's laws?
Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody was one of sixteen state prosecutors around the country to sign a letter this past week, saying that the law is too far-reaching.
According to the open letter, Maine's legislation would create a "right of action for damages against law enforcement, prosecutors, and other officials in our States who are enforcing our own valid state laws, even lawswhose constitutionality has been confirmed by federal appellate courts. On top of that, LD227 purports to block valid orders and judgments from our state courts enforcing laws upheld by federal appellate courts."
If Maine's legislation were to pass, the Republican prosecutors claimed in the letter it could create a "rapid tit-for-tat escalation that tears apart our Republic."
Are abortions legal in Florida?
Abortion is currently legal in Florida up to the 15th week of pregnancy. Last year, however, Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a law implementing a ban on abortions after six weeks except in cases of incest and rape, the Tallahassee Democrat reported.
Florida's six-week limit law is currently not yet in effect as activists are challenging the 15-week limit, passed in 2022, in the Florida Supreme Court. If the Supreme Court affirms the 15-week ban is valid, the six-week ban would go into effect thirty days after the ruling, according to the Center for Reproductive Rights.
Is transgender health care legal in Florida?
DeSantis also last year signed a new law that banned gender-affirming care for minors, the Tallahassee Democrat also reported last year.
That law also instituted new rules for adult patients seeking trans health, requiring a signed informed consent form, visits with a physician to oversee any health care related to transitioning, and for those doctors visits to take place in person, meaning it would be a crime to seek gender affirmation treatment through telehealth providers.
This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Florida could sue Maine over abortion, transgender shield law
