Kaiser Health News, April 26, 2012
In its current form, the bill would allow 41 Californians who are not physicians to perform a certain first-trimester abortion procedure.
San Francisco Chronicle: State Bill Would Let Non-Doctors Perform Abortions
As states across the country are passing laws to restrict access to abortion, California lawmakers are considering a significant expansion of who would be able to perform the procedure in the state. Under a bill that passed its first committee hearing Tuesday, nurse practitioners, nurse midwives and physician assistants would be able to perform what is known as an “aspiration” abortion, which is the most common abortion procedure and takes place in the first trimester of a pregnancy. The current form of the bill, SB1338 by Sen. Christine Kehoe, D-San Diego, would allow for only 41 people in the state, in addition to doctors, who have been through a pilot study on the issue to perform aspiration abortions, but backers say they expect that number to be significantly expanded as the proposal moves forward (Buchanan, 4/25).
The Sacramento Bee: Bill To Expand Abortion Access In California Falters In State Senate
A proposal aimed at expanding access to a first-trimester abortion procedure in California advanced Tuesday after being stripped of its key provisions, signaling that lawmakers could punt on the issue amid opposition from the California Nurses Association (Van Oot, 4/25).
War on Women 
Posted on April 26, 2012