House OK’s Abortion Clinic Regulations

By Meghan Spellman
Capital News Service

Richmond, VA. - Abortion clinics would face mandatory licensure and strict regulation under a bill approved by the Virginia House of Delegates. After much debate, the House this week voted 72-25 in favor of the measure proposed by Delegate Matthew J. Lohr, R-Rockingham.

The bill now moves to the Senate; it has been referred to the Senate Committee on Education and Health. Lohr said abortion clinics in Virginia are relatively unregulated and rarely inspected.

Under his proposal, an abortion clinic’s equipment would have to pass inspection by the state Board of Health every other year, and each clinic would have to possess emergency life-saving equipment such as a defibrillator.

“Even the GAB has three defibrillators,” Lohr said, referring to the General Assembly Building. Delegate David Englin, D-Alexandria, spoke against Lohr’s legislation, House Bill 393.

“Abortion clinics are already regulated by organizations such as the federal Occupation Safety and Health Administration,” Englin said.

Moreover, he said, nationally recognized associations set rigorous standards for clinics. “The National Abortion Federation already certifies abortion clinics.”

Englin said Virginia does not regulate clinics that provide other medical procedures. “This bill singles out and harasses one type of medical provider,” Englin said. He said he is worried that women will be discouraged from opting for abortion.

“To vote for this bill is to vote against a woman’s right to reproductive freedom,” Englin said. Lohr said he did not believe his legislation would pose “any extra burden” on the clinics.

HB 393 would apply to “any facility other than a hospital or an ambulatory surgery center in which 25 or more first-trimester abortions are performed in any 12-month period.” The bill states the Board of Health would regulate the licensure and regulation of such clinics.