Florida publishes emergency rules outlining medical exceptions to the six-week abortion ban

The Florida Agency for Health Care Administration has issued emergency rules stating that, under certain conditions, removing a fetus from the body after six weeks does not constitute an abortion.

Just Wednesday, Florida’s six-week abortion ban went into effect, with critics saying pregnant people wouldn’t be able to receive medical help in the event of an emergency. AHCA officials recognized in the rules published Thursday those medical exceptions that can happen after six weeks.

For example, inducing a birth after a pregnant person’s water breaks prematurely and the fetus does not survive, it does not count as an abortion and, therefore, does not need to be reported, according to the rules. The same applies to treating an ectopic pregnancy, which occurs when a fertilized egg grows outside of the uterus, or a trophoblastic tumor, which develops during the early stages of pregnancy.

However, the procedure must be recorded in the patient’s medical record, according to the emergency rule.

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Laura Goodhue, executive director of the Florida Alliance of Planned Parenthood Affiliates, wrote in a statement that the emergency rules demonstrate Florida politicians know the damage the six-week abortion ban causes.

“The so-called ‘emergency rules’ issued by (AHCA) today smack of the same political interference we’ve seen from the Legislature and state leaders. We expect it from politicians but it’s particularly disturbing to see this kind of disinformation coming from a state agency charged with protecting our health,” Goodhue wrote. “The fact is, if the State of Florida had these concerns they should have acted on them two years ago when the Legislature passed a 15-week abortion ban. Announcing these rules the day after Florida’s six-week ban went into effect makes it clear that the motivation is political cover for the State, and not protecting public health.”

She continued: “Today’s announcement has only caused more confusion and chaos when Floridians are hurting and can least afford it. Regardless of your position on abortion, it is undeniable that less than two days into living under a near-total abortion ban we are already seeing the pain and suffering these arbitrary restrictions on access to essential health care can cause. AHCA adding fuel to that fire is reckless and mean-spirited.”

As outlined in the six-week abortion ban, someone can get an abortion in the first two trimesters if the fetus has a fatal abnormality. There is also an exception to save a pregnant person’s life or physical health if determined medically necessary by two physicians.

AHCA blamed having to issue the emergency rules on the Biden administration, the media and advocacy groups.

“The Agency finds there is an immediate danger to the health, safety, and welfare of pregnant women and babies due to a deeply dishonest scare campaign and disinformation being perpetuated by the media, the Biden Administration, and advocacy groups to misrepresent the Heartbeat Protection Act and the State’s efforts to protect life, moms, and families,” according to the rules.

To Chelsea Daniels, a family physician in Miami and abortion-rights advocate with Physicians for Reproductive Health, the emergency rules are not enough to ensure access to care.

“Any restriction aiming to prevent people from accessing timely health care hurts our community. Exceptions like these guised as allowances for some people to access care are thinly veiled attempts to appease the public while not actually meeting their needs,” Daniels wrote in a statement to Florida Phoenix. “Exceptions to abortion bans like these are not centered on people’s real lives and real experiences. No one should have to prove themself sick enough or harmed enough (or be forced to go through official reporting systems) to be worthy of safe and effective health care.”

Meanwhile, abortion opponents say the emergency rules clarify their perceived difference between procedures to save a patient’s life and elective abortions. In a statement to the Phoenix, Andrew Shirvell, the executive director of Florida Voice for the Unborn applauded AHCA’s actions Thursday.

“The Agency’s emergency rules also reflect the fact that procedures intended to save the life of a mother are indeed very rare. It is a tragedy that the unborn child may not be able to survive as a result of the procedure needed to save the life of the mother; however, performing such a procedure is not a crime because the intent is to save both mother and child – unlike in the cases of elective abortions where the sole intent is to end the preborn child’s life even though the mother’s life is not endangered.”