Oklahoma Anti-Abortion Bill Would Revoke Medical Licenses Of Doctors Performing Abortions


Oklahoma state senators just passed an anti-abortion bill that will revoke the licenses of physicians who perform abortions.

The bill is one signature away from becoming a new state law. The GOP-dominated state senate has passed the bill on Thursday and it is awaiting the approval of Governor Mary Fallin, who is also a Republican Party member.

Here is an excerpt of SB 1552:

“Any physician participating in the performance of an abortion shall be prohibited from obtaining or renewing a license to practice medicine in this state. The State Board of Medical Licensure and Supervision shall revoke the license of an allopathic physician performing an abortion in this state.”

Pro-choice advocates are still hoping that the governor will veto the bill on the grounds that it is unconstitutional. Republican legislators have recently been churning controversial conservative bills like the Tennessee Bible Bill that was recently vetoed by Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam.

The anti-abortion bill may not directly ban abortion but it will prohibit doctors who perform abortions from obtaining or renewing their medical licenses. The bill defines the medical practice of abortion as “unprofessional conduct.”

One exception to the definition of unprofessional conduct under the bill is in cases wherein abortions are performed to save the life of a mother. The bill does not make exceptions in cases of incest and rape.

Of the bill, Amanda Allen, senior state legislative counsel at the Center for Reproductive Rights, said:

“Oklahoma politicians have made it their mission year after year to restrict women’s access vital health care services, yet this total ban on abortion is a new low.”

According to Sen. Nathan Dahm (R), the main function of the state senate in passing the anti-abortion bill is to protect life. The bill has undergone a third reading in the Senate last month and in the House on Thursday. A few Democrats also supported the bill.

With voting results of 59-to-9 vote and with 33 members abstaining or unable to vote, the controversial bill easily passed the Oklahoma State House of Representatives.

As Amanda Allen pointed out, the Oklahoma legislators have steadily been restricting the legal access of women to vital healthcare services, not only access to abortion medical services.

Featured image is by Serge Melki, available under a Creative Commons 2.0 license.

Homar has been a writer and editor for both print and online publications for more than fifteen years. He also worked for a scientific research institution and for a book publishing house. He currently works as a home-based freelance online writer and copy editor. He is active in various local civic organizations and regularly contributes as a columnist in regional newspapers in the Bicol Region, Philippines.