Two new Louisiana abortion restriction laws took effect Friday, including one that allows Louisianians to sue out-of-state providers of abortion-inducing medications.
House Bill 575 by Rep. Lauren Ventrella, R-Greenwell Springs, was dubbed the “Justice for Victims of Abortion Drug Dealers Act.” It extends the window for abortion lawsuits to be filed from three to five years after the abortion occurs and allows out-of-state doctors and activists to be sued.
The legislation is part of an effort from anti-abortion advocates to crack down on doctors who ship abortion-inducing medication to states where the procedure is illegal. In nearly all instances, abortion has been illegal in Louisiana since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022.
Also taking effect is House Bill 425 by Rep. Josh Carlson, R-Lafayette, which expands the definition of coerced abortion. It is now defined in state law as the “use or threatened use of force, control, or intimidation” against a pregnant woman to compel her to undergo an abortion against her will, regardless of whether the procedure has been attempted or completed.
Carlson’s legislation originally sought to expand the definition of coerced abortion to include the pregnant person’s actions. It was substantially trimmed back in committee to add battery, assault, simple kidnapping, false imprisonment and extortion involving another person.
The two bills easily passed the Republican-supermajority legislature earlier this year, although both were whittled down from their original, far-sweeping versions.
Ventrella’s law has the support of Attorney General Liz Murrill, who is currently prosecuting a New York doctor accused of providing abortion-inducing medication to the mother of a pregnant minor in West Baton Rouge Parish. Gov. Kathy Hochul has refused to extradite the doctor to Louisiana to face the charges, citing New York’s shield laws.
The doctor and the minor’s mother were both indicted. Murrill has alleged the minor was coerced to take the medication, though her mother was not charged with that crime.
Murrill and other attorneys general called on Congress this week to prevent states where abortion is legal from shielding doctors who prescribe abortion-inducing medication for people in states where the procedure is banned.