(SACRAMENTO, Calif.) – Arizona doctors could perform abortions on their patients in California under a proposal announced Wednesday by Gov. Gavin Newsom to get around a ban on almost all abortions in that state.
It would apply only to licensed doctors in good standing in Arizona and their patients, and would only last until the end of November. Arizona’s 1864 law that bans almost all abortions unless the mother’s life is in danger takes effect June 8. Newsom said protecting access to abortion is “just a matter of basic decency” and “respect for women and girls.”
“This Arizona law is the first border state law that will directly impact the state of California,” the Democratic governor said. “Instead of just acknowledging this fate and future, we are trying to get ahead of this law.”
Newsom joined the California Legislative Women’s Caucus and advocated for announcing the proposal. Lawmakers called the Arizona law “draconian” and said California had an obligation to get involved. The bill would need to be approved by a two-thirds vote in each house of the Legislature before reaching Newsom’s desk. Once he signs it, it will take effect immediately.
Dr. Tanya Spirtos, a gynecologist and president of the California Medical Association, said it’s unfortunate that patients getting abortions in Arizona have to travel out of state, but she’s proud to see California step in to help them.
“All personal medical decisions, including those related to abortion, should be made by patients in consultation with their health care providers,” Spirtos said. “By banning virtually all abortions in the state, the ruling will put doctors in danger for simply providing often life-saving medical care to their patients.”
The Arizona Supreme Court cleared the way earlier this month for the near-total ban to move forward. In addition to Arizona, 14 other states banned abortion at all stages of pregnancy. While abortion access in California has never been under serious threat, Newsom — widely seen as a potential presidential candidate after 2024 — has made defending that access a priority of his administration.
Newsom pushed for access to abortion to be enshrined in the California Constitution. He approved US$ 20 million of taxpayer money to help pay for women from other states to come to California for abortions. He signed dozens of laws aimed at making it harder for other states to investigate women for coming to California for abortions, including banning social media companies from complying with subpoenas or warrants.
His actions endeared him to key Democratic constituencies, despite some of the state’s other problems — including homelessness, wildfire insurance and two multibillion-dollar budget deficits.
In 2022, months after the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, California launched a publicly funded website to promote the state’s abortion services, including information about financial assistance for travel expenses, and to inform teens in other states that California does not require them to have parental permission to have an abortion in the state.
It has also become a major talking point in Newsom’s role as the top surrogate for President Joe Biden’s re-election campaign. Using money left over from his 2022 re-election campaign, Newsom started a political action committee he calls “ Campaign for Democracy ” which paid for billboards and television ads in Republican-led states to criticize their leaders’ attempts to ban or restrict access to abortion. In February, he launched ads in multiple states to criticize proposals that sought to ban out-of-state travel for abortions.
When an Alabama lawmaker introduced a bill to make it a crime to help someone under 18 get an abortion without telling their parents or guardians, Newsom paid for an ad that showed a young woman trying to leave the state but was stopped by a police officer who demands she take a pregnancy test.
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Associated Press writer Adam Beam contributed to this report.
This story originally appeared on Time.com read the full story
