[Pflienews] PharmFacts E-News Update: AZ Nursing Board OK's NPs to perform abortions

Tue May 20 15:38:29 MDT 2008

*PharmFacts E-News Update -- 20 May 2008 AD  

*http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/107851.php

  PFLI Exclusive!  

  Arizona Nursing Board Approves Recommendation Allowing Nurses To
  Perform First-Trimester Abortions

Article Date: 19 May 2008 - 8:00 PDT

The Arizona Board of Nursing <http://www.azbn.gov/> on Wednesday voted 
to approve a recommendation from the board's Advance Practice Committee 
that nurse practitioners with special training be permitted to perform 
certain abortion procedures, Capitol Media Services/Arizona Daily Star 
<http://www.azstarnet.com/allheadlines/239101> reports.

The board approved the recommendation with one dissent. Under the 
decision, nurses in the state can perform "aspiration" abortions, in 
which the fetus is vacuumed out of the uterus, up to the 13th week of 
pregnancy. Nurses will not be permitted to perform any abortions after 
13 weeks' gestation, the board said (Fischer, Capitol Media 
Services/Arizona Daily Star, 5/15). Although state law regulates 
nursing, there previously were no rules specifically addressing which 
types of practitioners can perform abortions.

In June 2007, the nursing board received a complaint against Mary 
Andrews, a nurse practitioner with Planned Parenthood Arizona 
<http://www.plannedparenthood.org/ppaz/> (Daily Women's Health Policy 
Report 
<http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/News2?news_iv_ctrl=-1&abbr=daily2_&page=NewsArticle&id=11280>, 
5/12). According to Capitol Media Services/Daily Star, Andrews has been 
performing aspiration abortions through 16 weeks' gestation since 2001. 
The board on Wednesday decided it will not penalize Andrews since it did 
not previously have a rule on when nurse practitioners could legally 
perform abortions. Andrews said she stopped performing second-trimester 
abortions in March and would comply with the nursing board's decision 
and not perform them in the future.

However, the board's decision does "not end the dispute," Capitol Media 
Services/Daily Star reports. The Arizona House recently passed a bill 
(HB 2269 
<http://www.azleg.gov/FormatDocument.asp?inDoc=/legtext/48leg/2r/summary/h.hb2269_03-05-08_caucuscow.doc.htm>) 
that would prohibit all nurses from performing surgical abortions. If 
the bill passes the Senate and is signed into law by Gov. Janet 
Napolitano (D), it would override the board's decision. It is unclear 
whether Napolitano, who recently vetoed 
<http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/News2?id=10960> two 
antiabortion measures, would sign the measure, according to Capitol 
Media Services/Daily Star.

Carol Bafaloukos, a spokesperson for PPAZ, said nurse practitioners had 
been performing abortions for PPAZ because of a shortage of doctors. She 
added that some women seeking abortions after the 13th week of pregnancy 
might have to wait to receive the procedure. Deborah Sheasby, an 
attorney for the Center for Arizona Policy <http://www.azpolicy.org/>, 
criticized the decision. Sheasby said that even if HB 2269 does not 
become law, she believes existing laws prohibit nurse practitioners from 
performing abortions (Capitol Media Services/Arizona Daily Star, 5/15).

Reprinted with kind permission from http://www.nationalpartnership.org. 
You can view the entire Daily Women's Health Policy Report, search the 
archives, or sign up for email delivery here 
<http://www.nationalpartnership.org/site/PageServer?pagename=daily2_fullreport>. 
The Daily Women's Health Policy Report is a free service of the National 
Partnership for Women & Families <http://www.nationalpartnership.org>, 
published by The Advisory Board Company.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

PFLI PharmAid Center
pfli at pfli.org <mailto:pfli at pfli.org>
PO Box 1281
Powell, OH 43065-1281 USA
800-227-8359
www.pfli.org

PFLI supports pharmacist rights of conscience NOT to be forced to 
dispense or counsel for chemicals which violate their sincerely held 
religious, moral or ethical beliefs.  For more info see:
http://www.pfli.org/main.php?pfli=conscienceclausefaq

*** PFLI is the only pharmacy association which is exclusively pro-life.
It represents thousands of pharmacists and many lay supporters
in the USA, Canada and all around the globe. For membership info, key
PFLI texts, PFLI archives, late-breaking news, abridged newsletter excerpts
or general information, visit the PFLI web site at http://www.pfli.org.
Or e-mail us at mailto:pfli at pfli.org.

*** We do NOT send out SPAM. To subscribe to PharmFacts E-News, just 
send an e-mail with the word
"subscribe" in the subject area;  to cease your subscription (although 
we can't
imagine anyone would!) just send an e-mail with "unsubscribe" in the 
subject area, or
manage your account at: http://pfli.org/mailman/listinfo/pflienews_pfli.org

*** You may contact PFLI at any/all of the following: Pharmacists For 
Life International,
PO Box 1281, Powell, OH 43065-1281 USA,  1-800-227-8359 [US & Canada only],
 +1-740-881-5520 [voice] or +1-707-667-2447 [fax]; e-mail us at 
mailto:pfli at pfli.org.

*** You can order our publications as well as begin/renew your 
membership right on our
website at http://www.pfli.org. Click on the "PFLI Store" link on the 
toolbar and
follow the prompts! There you can also donate to PFLI as well as 
purchase a wide range of publications. 

* *
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://pfli.org/pipermail/pflienews_pfli.org/attachments/20080520/076f7c7d/attachment-0001.html 
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: not available
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 14952 bytes
Desc: not available
Url : http://pfli.org/pipermail/pflienews_pfli.org/attachments/20080520/076f7c7d/attachment-0001.jpe 
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: siren.gif
Type: image/gif
Size: 9005 bytes
Desc: not available
Url : http://pfli.org/pipermail/pflienews_pfli.org/attachments/20080520/076f7c7d/attachment-0002.gif 
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: not available
Type: image/gif
Size: 2923 bytes
Desc: not available
Url : http://pfli.org/pipermail/pflienews_pfli.org/attachments/20080520/076f7c7d/attachment-0003.gif 