Tennessee lawmakers close in on restricting out-of-state abortion pills, telehealth

A proposed restriction on abortions in Tennessee takes aim at telehealth consultations with out-of-state providers. The bill, which is set for final passage, could become much more relevant if Roe v. Wade is struck down.

If the U.S. Supreme Court overturns abortion protections, there will be some states, like Tennessee, that no longer allow abortions. But the thinking is some patients could attempt to get an out-of-state doctor to prescribe abortion-inducing medication, which can be used to terminate pregnancies as far along as 10 weeks.

This latest proposal, HB 2416 / SB 2281, is on its way for full floor votes in the state House and Senate, and  it attempts to shut that possibility down. The bill requires the prescribing physician to hand the patient the medication. It criminalizes sending medications by mail or for pickup at a pharmacy.

The issue has received little attention. It was mentioned only in Senate Judiciary Committee hearings, as state Sen. Raumesh Akbari, D-Memphis, questioned the need for such a rule change.

“People kind of think, ‘Well, OK, you pick up the drug at the pharmacy or you pick it up at the prescriber, what’s the difference?’ And they’re not looking at it as a big picture or connecting the dots,” Akbari says. “Any type of legislation like this is typically an assault on Roe v. Wade, and it’s something that’s coordinated among states.”

Republicans say the measure is simply intended to increase penalties for something that’s already against the law in Tennessee — telehealth consultations for medication abortions. Sen. Mike Bell, R-Riceville, sponsored the measure and said in an email he had not thought about the consequence of hampering out-of-state telehealth visits following the fall of Roe v. Wade, but added that it’s “a consequence I support.”

Tennessee’s bill was promoted by Tennessee Right to Life. Many legislatures led by the GOP are passing new restrictions on medication abortions, which now occur more often than surgical abortions, according to the Guttmacher Institute.