as introduced - 93rd Legislature (2023 - 2024) Posted on 01/26/2023 09:31am
A bill for an act
relating to health; modifying a grant program to support pregnant people in carrying
their pregnancies to term and new parents caring for babies after birth; amending
Minnesota Statutes 2022, section 145.4235.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
Minnesota Statutes 2022, section 145.4235, is amended to read:
For purposes of this section, deleted text begin the following terms
have the meanings givendeleted text end new text begin "medically accurate" means information that isnew text end :
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(1) "abortion" means the use of any means to terminate the pregnancy of a woman known
to be pregnant with knowledge that the termination with those means will, with reasonable
likelihood, cause the death of the unborn child. For purposes of this section, abortion does
not include an abortion necessary to prevent the death of the mother;
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(2) "nondirective counseling" means providing clients with:
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(i) a list of health care providers and social service providers that provide prenatal care,
childbirth care, infant care, foster care, adoption services, alternatives to abortion, or abortion
services; and
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(ii) nondirective, nonmarketing information regarding such providers; and
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(3) "unborn child" means a member of the species Homo sapiens from fertilization until
birth.
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(1) verified or supported by the weight of peer-reviewed medical research conducted in
compliance with accepted scientific methods;
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(2) recognized as medically sound and objective by:
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(i) leading health care organizations with relevant expertise, such as the American
Medical Association, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the American
Public Health Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American College of
Physicians, and the American Academy of Family Physicians;
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(ii) federal agencies, such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Food
and Drug Administration, the National Cancer Institute, and the National Institutes of Health;
or
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(iii) leading national or international scientific advisory groups, such as the Health and
Medicine Division and the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices; or
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(3) recommended by or affirmed in the health care practice guidelines of a nationally
recognized health care accreditation organization.
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(a) The commissioner shall award grants to eligible
applicants under paragraph (c) for the reasonable expenses of deleted text begin alternatives to abortiondeleted text end
programs to supportdeleted text begin , encourage,deleted text end and assist deleted text begin women in carryingdeleted text end new text begin pregnant people withnew text end their
pregnancies deleted text begin to term anddeleted text end new text begin , or new parentsnew text end caring for their babies after birthnew text begin ,new text end by providing
information on, referral to, and assistance with securing necessary services deleted text begin that enable
women to carry their pregnancies to term and care for their babies after birthdeleted text end . Necessary
services must include, but are not limited to:
(1) new text begin assistance with enrolling in public health care programs and accessing new text end medical care;
(2) nutritional services;
(3) housing assistance;
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(4) domestic violence services;
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(5) mental health counseling services;
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deleted text begin (4)deleted text end new text begin (6)new text end adoption services;
deleted text begin (5)deleted text end new text begin (7)new text end education and employment assistance, including services that support the
continuation and completion of high school;
deleted text begin (6)deleted text end new text begin (8)new text end child care assistance; and
deleted text begin (7)deleted text end new text begin (9)new text end parenting education and support services.
An applicant may not provide or assist a deleted text begin woman to obtaindeleted text end new text begin person in obtainingnew text end adoption
services from a provider of adoption services that is not licensed.
(b) In addition to providing information and referral under paragraph (a), an eligible
program may provide one or more of the necessary services under paragraph (a) deleted text begin that assists
women in carrying their pregnancies to termdeleted text end new text begin to support a person with the person's pregnancy
or with caring for the person's baby, so long as the services are provided by appropriately
trained or licensed individuals and in accordance with lawnew text end . To avoid duplication of efforts,
grantees may refer new text begin a person new text end to other public or private programs, rather than provide the care
directly, if deleted text begin a womandeleted text end new text begin the personnew text end meets eligibility criteria for the other programs.
(c) To be eligible for a grant, an agency or organization must:
(1) be a private, nonprofit organization;
(2) demonstrate that the program is conducted under appropriate supervision;
(3) not charge deleted text begin womendeleted text end for services provided under the program;
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(4) provide each pregnant woman counseled with accurate information on the
developmental characteristics of babies and of unborn children, including offering the printed
information described in section 145.4243;
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(5) ensure that its alternatives-to-abortion program's purpose is to assist and encourage
women in carrying their pregnancies to term and to maximize their potentials thereafter;
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(4) not require a person to receive an ultrasound or counseling, view media, or participate
in any other activities prior to or as a condition of receiving information, resources, or other
services offered by the agency or organization;
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(5) ensure that all signage and print materials make clear that resources and services are
available free of charge and free of preconditions;
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(6) ensure that any information provided about pregnancy or any medical condition or
procedure related to pregnancy is medically accurate;
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(7) ensure that if the agency or organization offers ultrasounds or referrals to other
providers for ultrasounds:
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(i) each ultrasound provided by the agency or organization is provided by, and the results
are interpreted by, a licensed medical professional whose scope of practice includes provision
of ultrasounds; and
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(ii) when referring a person to another provider for an ultrasound, the agency or
organization:
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(A) discloses to the person, to the best of the agency's or organization's knowledge,
whether the provider meets the requirements of item (i); and
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(B) warns the person that ultrasounds provided by a person other than a licensed medical
professional may pose health risks to the fetus and may not provide accurate information,
including but not limited to gestational dating information; and
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deleted text begin (6)deleted text end new text begin (8)new text end ensure that none of the money provided is used to encourage or deleted text begin affirmativelydeleted text end
counsel a deleted text begin woman to have an abortion not necessary to prevent her death, to provide her an
abortion, or to directly refer her to an abortion provider for an abortion. The agency or
organization may provide nondirective counseling; anddeleted text end new text begin person toward one birth outcome
over another. When providing information on prenatal care and delivery, infant care, foster
care, adoption, or pregnancy termination, the agency or organization must provide
evidence-based, accurate information, and must provide referrals upon request.
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(7) have had the alternatives to abortion program in existence for at least one year as of
July 1, 2011; or incorporated an alternative to abortion program that has been in existence
for at least one year as of July 1, 2011.
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(d) The provisions, words, phrases, and clauses of paragraph (c) are inseverable from
this subdivision, and if any provision, word, phrase, or clause of paragraph (c) or its
application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity applies to all of this
subdivision.
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(e) An organization that provides abortions, promotes abortions, or directly refers to an
abortion provider for an abortion is ineligible to receive a grant under this program. An
affiliate of an organization that provides abortions, promotes abortions, or directly refers
to an abortion provider for an abortion is ineligible to receive a grant under this section
unless the organizations are separately incorporated and independent from each other. To
be independent, the organizations may not share any of the following:
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(1) the same or a similar name;
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(2) medical facilities or nonmedical facilities, including but not limited to, business
offices, treatment rooms, consultation rooms, examination rooms, and waiting rooms;
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(3) expenses;
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(4) employee wages or salaries; or
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(5) equipment or supplies, including but not limited to, computers, telephone systems,
telecommunications equipment, and office supplies.
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(f) An organization that receives a grant under this section and that is affiliated with an
organization that provides abortion services must maintain financial records that demonstrate
strict compliance with this subdivision and that demonstrate that its independent affiliate
that provides abortion services receives no direct or indirect economic or marketing benefit
from the grant under this section.
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(g) The commissioner shall approve any information provided by a grantee on the health
risks associated with abortions to ensure that the information is medically accurate.
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(a) Any program receiving a grant under this sectionnew text begin :
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new text begin (1)new text end must have a privacy policy and procedures in place to ensure that the name, address,
telephone number, or any other information that might identify any deleted text begin womandeleted text end new text begin personnew text end seeking
new text begin or receiving new text end the services of the program is not made public or shared with any other agency
or organization without the deleted text begin writtendeleted text end new text begin signed, datednew text end consent of the deleted text begin woman.deleted text end new text begin person;
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new text begin (2) must keep confidentialnew text end all communications between the program and the deleted text begin woman
must remain confidential. For purposes of any medical care provided by the program,
including, but not limited to, pregnancy tests or ultrasonic scanning, the program must
adhere to the requirements in sections 144.291 to 144.298 that apply to providers before
releasing any information relating to the medical care provided.deleted text end new text begin person seeking or receiving
services; and
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(3) must not release any records about a person receiving care or counseling from the
program without signed, dated consent from the person or the person's authorized
representative authorizing the release, specific authorization in law, or a representation from
a health care provider that the provider holds a signed, dated consent from the person
authorizing the release. Section 144.293, subdivisions 3 to 10, apply to consent obtained
and to the release of records under this clause.
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(b) The document provided to the person for purposes of obtaining consent under
paragraph (a) must be a separate form from any other materials provided by the program,
must clearly state the entities with which the information or records may be shared, and
must clearly state that services and goods provided by the program are not conditioned on
the person's consent to share personally identifying information.
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deleted text begin (b)deleted text end new text begin (c)new text end Notwithstanding paragraph (a), the commissioner has access to any information
necessary to monitor and review a grantee's program as required under subdivision 4.
deleted text begin The commissioner shall make grants under subdivision
2 beginning no later than July 1, 2006.deleted text end In awarding grantsnew text begin under subdivision 2new text end , the
commissioner shall consider the program's demonstrated capacity in providing services to
assist deleted text begin adeleted text end pregnant deleted text begin woman in carrying her pregnancy to termdeleted text end new text begin personsnew text end . The commissioner shall
monitor and review the programs of each grantee to ensure that the grantee carefully adheres
to the purposes and requirements of subdivision 2 and shall cease funding a grantee that
fails to do so.
deleted text begin Except as provided in subdivision 2, paragraph (d),deleted text end If any
provision, word, phrase, or clause of this section or its application to any person or
circumstance is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect the provisions, words, phrases,
clauses, or applications of this section that can be given effect without the invalid provision,
word, phrase, clause, or application and to this end, the provisions, words, phrases, and
clauses of this section are severable.
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The Minnesota Supreme Court has
original jurisdiction over an action challenging the constitutionality of this section and shall
expedite the resolution of the action.
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