This bill proposes significant updates to current Arizona statutes regarding abortion by expanding the roles of health care providers and refining definitions related to abortion procedures. It removes the prohibition on physician assistants performing surgical abortions and includes nurse practitioners and certified nurse midwives as authorized providers of abortion services. The definitions of "abortion" and "surgical abortion" are also modified to exclude certain medical procedures and medications from being classified as abortions, while clearer guidelines for informed consent and provider responsibilities are established. Additionally, the bill allows certain individuals, such as the father of the unborn child and maternal grandparents, to file civil actions related to abortions performed without informed consent and restricts this right to only the woman on whom the abortion was performed. It sets statutory damages for violations at $5,000 or three times the cost of the abortion, whichever is greater, and expands the list of health care providers required to inform women about perinatal hospice services. The bill also repeals outdated provisions and streamlines the legal framework surrounding abortion procedures, ultimately aiming to enhance patient rights and safety while clarifying provider responsibilities.

Statutes affected:
Introduced Version: 32-1606, 32-2501, 32-2531, 32-2532, 36-449.01, 36-449.03, 36-2151, 36-2152, 36-2153, 36-2155, 36-2156, 36-2158, 36-2160, 36-2161, 36-2162.01, 36-2301, 36-2301.01, 36-2301.02, 32-3248.03, 41-1750, 92-544, 13-604, 32-1669, 32-1668, 32-1651, 32-1272, 32-2536, 32-2521, 32-1901, 41-1831, 36-661, 91-513, 35-146, 35-147, 32-2504, 32-3248, 32-3248.01, 36-301, 36-405, 36-431.01, 36-427, 36-430, 13-3603.02, 32-3201, 41-319, 13-3620, 11-593, 36-329