Maine recently updated its drug labeling law to shield physicians who prescribe abortion pills, allowing the prescribers to list their healthcare facility instead of their names on the label.
Local ABC affiliate WMTW reported that Gov. Janet Mills, a Democrat, signed the bill May 29, two days after both chambers of Maine’s legislature approved it. The bill covers abortion drugs mifepristone, misoprostol, and their generic alternatives.
According to WMTW, Mills has a history of shielding physicians and healthcare workers who commit abortions. Last year, she signed a bill that bans other states from taking legal action against abortionists or those who provide “treatments” for “gender transitions.” The outlet reported that more than a dozen other states also have shield laws for abortion providers to protect them from out-of-state investigations.
Both laws are significant in light of recent abortion cases in Louisiana and Texas, in which a New York physician, Dr. Margaret Carpenter, mailed abortion pills to both pro-life states. The first incident, in Louisiana, resulted in the state indicting Carpenter and signing an extradition warrant; however, New York’s shield law protected her. Carpenter also faced a lawsuit and fine from Texas for mailing the pills into the state, but no action has been taken on her part, according to a May 13 report from The Guardian.
The outlet also reported that Louisiana is investigating Carpenter again for her actions. Legal analysts reportedly expect the standoff between the states to reach the Supreme Court.