Rhode Island advances law protecting doctors who provide abortions & gender-affirming care

The Rhode Island state Senate has passed a bill that would shield health care practitioners who provide abortions or gender-affirming care.

S 2262, known as the Healthcare Provider Shield Act, would prevent those licensed in the state from being prosecuted by other states where abortion or transgender health care are criminalized, including protecting them from having to provide documents or patient information even upon subpoena.

The Rhode Island Senate passed the bill Thursday in a 29 to 7 vote. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairwoman Dawn Euer, a Newport Democrat who introduced the legislation, said on the chamber floor that the the law would protect against "attacks" on health care.

“Since the fall of Roe v. Wade, we have seen an unprecedented level of attacks on health care providers, on reproductive rights, across the country,” she said, reports the Boston Globe. “A number of states have passed hostile actions to try to cross state boundaries and go after health care providers in other states.”

Rhode Island passed a law protecting the right to abortion in the state, the Reproductive Privacy Act, in 2019 in anticipation of a decision from the U.S. Supreme Court that would repeal protections surrounding the vital care. The Senate's vote on the Healthcare Provider Shield Act came exactly eleven years after the state legislature voted to enact marriage equality.

The bill now advances to the state House of Representatives, where Majority Floor Manager John G. “Jay” Edwards, a Democrat from Tiverton, has introduced a companion bill. It is likely to pass the Democrat-controlled body, after which it will head to Democratic Gov. Dan McKee. Upon signing, Rhode Island will be the thirteenth state to enact a shield law for health care providers, according to the Movement Advancement Project.

“I think it’s incredibly important that we are standing solidly shoulder to shoulder with our transgender community members, and making sure that the legal health care that is evidence-based that they will get from Rhode Island providers is protected,” Euer said.