Sioux Falls Argus Leader Examines Role Of South Dakota Physicians In Abortion Ban Debate
Several South Dakota physicians have "lined up on opposite sides" of the state's law (HB 1215) that bans abortion except to save a woman's life and are "lending their personal and medical opinions to a cause in which they believe," the Sioux Falls Argus Leader reports. According to Ken Aspaas, president of the South Dakota State Medical Association, the abortion ban debate has divided the state's medical community. Publicly, the association "has taken a largely hands-off approach to the subject of abortion," after "heated" discussions among its members in recent months, according to the Argus Leader. However, the SDSMA in June released a statement "strongly condemn[ing]" interference by the government or any person in a medical decision, according to the Argus Leader. Some physicians are worried about the ban's effect, "especially when they deem the procedure to be medically necessary for the health of the pregnant woman," the Argus Leader reports. Supporters of the ban have pointed to a report released last year by the South Dakota Task Force to Study Abortion, which included testimony from physicians that women could experience potentially harmful emotional and mental problems from undergoing the procedure, according to the Argus Leader. The task force was appointed by Gov. Mike Rounds (R) and was co-chaired by Maria Bell -- a Sioux Falls ob-gyn who also is the co-chair of the South Dakota Campaign for Healthy Families, the group that organized the petition drive that brought the abortion ban onto the state ballot (Myers, Sioux Falls Argus Leader, 7/16).
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