An Act To Amend the Laws Governing Abortion Reporting
Maine Legislature, Session 121, LD 1129
Committee: Health and Human Services
Sponsors: DAVIS, GILMAN, BERRY, CARR, DUPREY, JOY, PARADIS, PINEAU, SNOWE-MELLO
Amends: 22 MRSA §1596

Legislative Document 
No. 1129 
H.P.832 
House of Representatives, March 4, 2003 
An Act To Amend the Laws Governing Abortion Reporting 
Reference to the Committee on Health and Human Services suggested and ordered printed. 
17/~/J7.~ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Presented by Representative DAVIS of Falmouth. (BY REQUEST) 
Cosponsored by Senator GILMAN of Cumberland and 
Representatives: BERRY of Belmont, CARR of Lincoln, DUPREY of Hampden, JOY of 
Crystal, PARADIS of Frenchville, PINEAU of Jay, SNOWE-MELLO of Poland, Senator: 
DAVIS of Piscataquis. 
Printed on recycled paper 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 22 MRSA §1596, sub-§2, as repealed and replaced by PL 
1989, c. 274, §1, is amended to read: 
2. 
Abortion reports. 
A report of each abortion performed 
sha!! ~ 
be made to the Department of Human 
Serv~ces on forms 
prescribed by the department. These report forms sha!! may not 
identify the patient by name or otherwise and sha!! may contain 
only the information requested on the United States Standard 
Report of Induced Termination of Pregnancy, 
published by the 
National Center for Health Statistics, dated January 1978, or any 
more recent revision of a standard report form. 
The 
form containing that information and data sha!! must be 
prepared and signed by the attending physician and transmitted to 
the department not later than 10 days following the end of the 
month in which the abortion is performed. 
The department shall 
publish and make available to the public such information and 
data within 60 days from the end of the calendar year for which 
they were reported. 
A physician who reports data on an abortion pursuant 
section shall be 
immune 
from any criminal liability 
abortion under section 1598. 
to this 
for that 
The report forms must be completely filled out. 
Any portion of 
the form that is optional must be clearly marked. 
The form must 
include the name of the physician, the date of the abortion, the 
date of the last menses, if known, the estimated age of the fetus 
and the procedure used in the abortion. 
The form may require the 
reporting of other information. 
A person who violates this subsection must be reported by the 
department to the Board of Licensure in Medicine within 30 days 
of each violation. 
For the purposes of this subsection, each 
incomplete report is a separate violation. 
The department shall adopt rules to implement this subsection. 
Rules adopted pursuant to this subsection are routine technical 
rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A. 
The department shall publish the name of every person reported to 
the Board of Licensure in Medicine and the number of times the 
person violated this 
subsection. 
This 
information 
must 
be 
available to the public within 60 
days 
from the end of the 
calendar year for which it was reported. 
Page l-LR1636(1) 
... 
• 
SUMMARY 
This bill requires the full completion of abortion reports 
that are 
required for 
the 
Department of 
Human 
Services 
and 
provides 
for 
reporting 
by 
the 
department 
to 
the 
Board 
of 
Licensure in Medicine for every violation. 
It specifies certain 
information that must be completed on the form .