A reproductive rights bill passed a state Senate floor vote 22-3 on Tuesday and will now cross over to the House for consideration.
Senate Bill 1 would ensure abortion access for individuals and protect medical providers throughout the state from potential prosecution.
The bill follows the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision last year in Dobbs v. Jackson, which confirmed the U.S. Constitution does not offer a right to an abortion, overruling Roe v. Wade.
“With the overturning of Roe v. Wade last year, those rights are in question like they haven’t been in a long time,” Oahu Sen. Karl Rhoads said last week during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing.
“This bill is really a conservative bill in the sense it’s not really trying to change the status quo pre-Dobbs, but because the underlying legal situation is different, we felt like some changes would be necessary,” said Rhoads, who co-introduced the bill.
The bill clarifies a patient has the right to an abortion, replaces terms with gender-neutral identifiers to cover all pregnancy-capable people, and ensures the state will protect health care providers from subpoenas, arrests, civil actions or any interstate investigations related to reproductive health care services.
Roughly 318 pages of testimony were submitted for the bill, with a majority in support.
Three Senators voted no on the bill: Republican Sen. Brenton Awa, Republican Sen. Kurt Fevella and Democratic Sen. Mike Gabbard, all from Oahu.
“We want to make sure the people of Hawaii know that despite what is occurring in other parts of the country, the rights that were granted to them in the state statutes, as well as the state constitution’s right of privacy, will be protected,” Puna Sen. Joy San Buenaventura told the Tribune-Herald on Tuesday following a press conference about the passage of the bill. “SB 1 is the Legislature’s way of ensuring medical providers in the state of Hawaii who provide safe abortions will be protected from harassment, arrest and subpoena power from other states that have outlawed it.”
San Buenaventura sponsored the bill, along with Sen. Jarrett Keohokalole, a Democrat from Oahu.
“In Hawaii, Roe remains the law of the land,” Keohokalole said during the press conference held at the Patsy T. Mink Monument, named after the late U.S. congresswoman who was a supporter of abortion rights.
Hawaii has a long history of leading reproductive rights legislation. In 1970, three years before Roe v. Wade, Hawaii became the first state to legalize abortion in a bipartisan effort.
In 2006, the state implemented the Right of Privacy Act, which confirmed the state will not deny or interfere with a pregnant person’s right to choose.
Progressive leadership continued in October of last year when former Gov. David Ige issued an executive order limiting Hawaii’s obligation to cooperate with other states in investigations, proceedings or warrants involving reproductive health care services.
This new Senate bill codifies Ige’s order.
“It not only codifies his order, but it actually strengthens it,” San Buenaventura said, noting an executive order can be retracted at any time by a new governor. “Although Gov. Green has not mentioned he had any intention at all of doing that, by codifying it, we are assuring the medical community that for those who provide abortions safely and legally, the state of Hawaii will stand behind them.”
The bill also increases access by repealing previous requirements that abortions, including aspiration abortions performed by advance practice registered nurses, or APRNs, be performed at certain locations.
“Even though last year we approved APRNs to provide abortions, we understood that abortion practitioners were still not able to provide abortions to rural Hawaii,” said San Buenavenutra. “This bill allows for physicians assistants, under the supervision of physicians, to provide aspiration or medicated abortions throughout the state.”
The bill incorporated elements from other proposed legislation this year, including Senate Bill 896, which was introduced by San Buenaventura.
“We wanted to give the House one bill that was comprehensive,” she said. “We believe we are pushing a bill the House will also agree with, and we are hoping that what we’ve passed in the Senate is in a form that they can fast track and send to the governor’s office prior to the end of the session.”
If signed into law by Green, the bill would take effect upon approval.
Email Grant Phillips at gphillips@hawaiitribune-herald.com.