Bill Text: MN HF2103 | 2011-2012 | 87th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Abortions prohibited when fetal heartbeat is detected.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 16)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-02-09 - Authors added Dettmer and Quam [HF2103 Detail]
Download: Minnesota-2011-HF2103-Introduced.html
1.2relating to health; prohibiting abortions when fetal heartbeat is detected;
1.3amending Minnesota Statutes 2010, section 147.091, subdivision 1; proposing
1.4coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 145.
1.5BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
1.6 Section 1. [145.4071] LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS.
1.7The legislature finds, according to contemporary medical research, the following:
1.8(1) as many as 30 percent of natural pregnancies end in spontaneous miscarriage;
1.9(2) less than five percent of all natural pregnancies end in spontaneous miscarriage
1.10after detection of fetal cardiac activity;
1.11(3) over 90 percent of in vitro pregnancies survive the first trimester if cardiac
1.12activity is detected in the gestational sac;
1.13(4) nearly 90 percent of in vitro pregnancies do not survive the first trimester where
1.14cardiac activity is not detected in the gestational sac;
1.15(5) fetal heartbeat, therefore, has become a key medical predictor that an unborn
1.16human individual will reach viability and live birth; and
1.17(6) cardiac activity begins at a biologically identifiable moment in time, normally
1.18when the fetal heart is formed in the gestational sac.
1.19 Sec. 2. [145.4072] DEFINITIONS.
1.20For purposes of sections 145.4071 to 145.4073, the following terms have the
1.21meanings given.
1.22(a) "Contraceptive" means a device, drug, or chemical that prevents conception.
2.1(b) "Fetal heartbeat" means cardiac activity or the steady and repetitive rhythmic
2.2contraction of the fetal heart within the gestational sac.
2.3(c) "Fetus" means the human offspring developing during pregnancy from the
2.4moment of conception and includes the embryonic stage of development.
2.5(d) "Gestational age" means the age of an unborn child as calculated from the first
2.6day of the last menstrual period of a pregnant woman.
2.7(e) "Gestational sac" comprises the extra embryonic membranes that envelop the
2.8fetus and is typically visible by ultrasound after the fourth week of pregnancy.
2.9 (f) "Medical emergency" means a condition that in the physician's good faith medical
2.10judgment, based upon the facts known to the physician at that time, so endangers the life
2.11of the pregnant woman or a major bodily function of the pregnant woman as to necessitate
2.12the immediate performance or inducement of an abortion.
2.13(g) "Physician" means a person licensed to practice medicine pursuant to chapter
2.14147, or a physician in training under the supervision of a licensed physician.
2.15(h) "Spontaneous abortion" means a miscarriage or the spontaneous loss of a fetus
2.16before the twentieth week of pregnancy.
2.17(i) "Unborn child" means an individual organism of the species homo sapiens from
2.18fertilization until live birth.
2.19 Sec. 3. [145.4073] PROHIBITED ABORTION; FETAL HEARTBEAT.
2.20 Subdivision 1. Determination of presences of fetal heartbeat. (a) Except when
2.21a medical emergency exists that prevents compliance with this section, no person shall
2.22perform an abortion on a pregnant woman prior to determining whether the fetus has a
2.23detectable fetal heartbeat. Any person who performs an abortion on a pregnant woman
2.24based on the exception provided in this section shall note in the woman's medical record
2.25that a medical emergency necessitating the abortion existed.
2.26(b) A person who intends to perform an abortion on a pregnant woman shall
2.27determine whether there is the presence of a fetal heartbeat of the unborn child according
2.28to standard medical practice. A person shall comply with this paragraph regardless of
2.29whether the commissioner of health has promulgated rules under paragraph (c).
2.30(c) The commissioner of health may promulgate rules describing the appropriate
2.31methods of performing an examination for the presence of a fetal heartbeat of an unborn
2.32child based on standard medical practice.
2.33(d) If a physician performs an abortion on a pregnant woman prior to determining
2.34whether the fetus has a detectable fetal heartbeat, that physician is subject to disciplinary
2.35action under section 147.091.
3.1 Subd. 2. Detected fetal heartbeat; information provided. This subdivision
3.2applies to all abortions that are not otherwise prohibited by state law, except when a
3.3medical emergency exists that prevents compliance with this subdivision.
3.4(a) If the person who intends to perform an abortion on a pregnant woman detects
3.5a fetal heartbeat in the unborn child no later than 24 hours prior to the performance of
3.6the intended abortion, then the following applies: the person intending to perform the
3.7abortion shall inform the pregnant woman in writing that the unborn child has a fetal
3.8heartbeat and, to the best of the person's knowledge, the statistical probability of bringing
3.9the unborn child to term based on the gestational age of the unborn child possessing a
3.10detectable fetal heartbeat.
3.11A person shall comply with this subdivision regardless of whether the commissioner
3.12of health has promulgated rules under paragraph (c).
3.13(b) The pregnant woman shall sign a form acknowledging that she received
3.14information from the person intending to perform the abortion that the unborn child has a
3.15fetal heartbeat and that she is aware of the statistical probability of bringing the unborn
3.16child to term.
3.17(c) The commissioner of health may define and promulgate rules based upon
3.18available medical evidence of the statistical probability of bringing an unborn child to term
3.19based on the gestational age of an unborn child who possesses a detectable fetal heartbeat.
3.20 Subd. 3. Abortion prohibited when fetal heartbeat detected. (a) Except as
3.21provided in paragraph (b), no person shall knowingly perform an abortion on a pregnant
3.22woman with specific intent to cause the termination of the life of the unborn child
3.23whose fetal heartbeat has been detected according to the requirements of subdivision 1.
3.24Any person who acts based on an exception provided paragraph (b) shall so note in the
3.25pregnant woman's medical record and shall specify in the pregnant woman's medical
3.26record which exception the person invoked.
3.27(b) A person is not in violation of paragraph (a) if that person performs a medical
3.28procedure designed or intended, in that person's reasonable medical judgment, to prevent
3.29the death of a pregnant woman or to prevent a serious risk of the substantial and
3.30irreversible impairment of a major bodily function of the pregnant woman.
3.31Any person who performs a medical procedure as described in this paragraph shall
3.32declare in writing, under penalty of perjury, that the medical procedure is necessary, to the
3.33best of that person's reasonable medical judgment, to prevent the death of the pregnant
3.34woman or to prevent a serious risk of the substantial and irreversible impairment of a
3.35major bodily function of the pregnant woman. The person shall also provide in writing,
3.36under penalty of perjury, the type of medical condition the pregnant woman experienced
4.1which required the medical procedure performed as described in paragraph (a), and the
4.2medical rationale for the conclusion that the medical procedure is necessary to prevent the
4.3death of the pregnant woman or to prevent a serious risk of the substantial and irreversible
4.4impairment of a major bodily function of the pregnant woman.
4.5(c) The person who performs a medical procedure as described in paragraph (b) shall
4.6include the required written documentation in the pregnant woman's medical record and
4.7shall maintain a record of the documentation for at least seven years.
4.8(d) A person is not in violation of paragraph (a) if that person has performed an
4.9examination for the presence of a fetal heartbeat utilizing standard medical practice and
4.10that examination does not reveal the presence of a heartbeat, or the person has been
4.11informed by a physician who has performed the examination for fetal heartbeat that the
4.12examination did not reveal a heartbeat.
4.13(e) Whoever violates this subdivision is guilty of a felony and must be sentenced to
4.14imprisonment for not less than six years, but not more than 12 years, and to payment of
4.15a fine of up to $10,000.
4.16 Subd. 4. Record of medical emergency exceptions. Any person performing an
4.17abortion on a pregnant woman carrying an unborn child whose heartbeat has been detected
4.18pursuant to the requirements of subdivision 1 to preserve the health of the pregnant woman
4.19shall set forth in a separate document, under penalty of perjury, the medical condition that
4.20the abortion would assertedly address and the medical rationale for the conclusion that
4.21the abortion is necessary to address that condition. The person shall include this written
4.22documentation in the pregnant woman's medical record and shall maintain a copy in
4.23the person's own records for at least seven years. This documentation requirement is
4.24independent of the provisions in subdivision 3 of this section.
4.25 Subd. 5. Pregnant woman not liable. A pregnant woman on whom an abortion
4.26is performed in violation of subdivision 1 is not guilty of any violation of this section or
4.27of attempting to commit or conspiring to commit any violation of this section and is not
4.28subject to a civil penalty based on that violation.
4.29 Subd. 6. Contraceptives not prohibited. Nothing in this section prohibits the
4.30sale, use, prescription, or administration of a measure, drug, or chemical designed for
4.31contraceptive purposes.
4.32 Subd. 7. Severability. If any one or more provision, section, subdivision, paragraph,
4.33sentence, clause, phrase, or word of sections 145.4071 to 145.4073 or the application
4.34thereof to any person or circumstance is found to be unconstitutional, the same is hereby
4.35declared to be severable and the balance of sections 145.4071 to 145.4073 shall remain
4.36effective notwithstanding such unconstitutionality. The legislature hereby declares
5.1that it would have passed sections 145.4071 to 145.4073, and each provision, section,
5.2subdivision, paragraph, sentence, clause, phrase, or word thereof, irrespective of the fact
5.3that any one or more provision, section, subdivision, paragraph, sentence, clause, phrase,
5.4or word be declared unconstitutional.
5.5 Sec. 4. Minnesota Statutes 2010, section 147.091, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
5.6 Subdivision 1. Grounds listed. The board may refuse to grant a license, may
5.7refuse to grant registration to perform interstate telemedicine services, or may impose
5.8disciplinary action as described in section147.141 against any physician. The following
5.9conduct is prohibited and is grounds for disciplinary action:
5.10(a) Failure to demonstrate the qualifications or satisfy the requirements for a license
5.11contained in this chapter or rules of the board. The burden of proof shall be upon the
5.12applicant to demonstrate such qualifications or satisfaction of such requirements.
5.13(b) Obtaining a license by fraud or cheating, or attempting to subvert the licensing
5.14examination process. Conduct which subverts or attempts to subvert the licensing
5.15examination process includes, but is not limited to: (1) conduct which violates the
5.16security of the examination materials, such as removing examination materials from the
5.17examination room or having unauthorized possession of any portion of a future, current, or
5.18previously administered licensing examination; (2) conduct which violates the standard of
5.19test administration, such as communicating with another examinee during administration
5.20of the examination, copying another examinee's answers, permitting another examinee
5.21to copy one's answers, or possessing unauthorized materials; or (3) impersonating an
5.22examinee or permitting an impersonator to take the examination on one's own behalf.
5.23(c) Conviction, during the previous five years, of a felony reasonably related to the
5.24practice of medicine or osteopathy. Conviction as used in this subdivision shall include
5.25a conviction of an offense which if committed in this state would be deemed a felony
5.26without regard to its designation elsewhere, or a criminal proceeding where a finding or
5.27verdict of guilt is made or returned but the adjudication of guilt is either withheld or
5.28not entered thereon.
5.29(d) Revocation, suspension, restriction, limitation, or other disciplinary action
5.30against the person's medical license in another state or jurisdiction, failure to report to the
5.31board that charges regarding the person's license have been brought in another state or
5.32jurisdiction, or having been refused a license by any other state or jurisdiction.
5.33(e) Advertising which is false or misleading, which violates any rule of the board,
5.34or which claims without substantiation the positive cure of any disease, or professional
5.35superiority to or greater skill than that possessed by another physician.
6.1(f) Violating a rule promulgated by the board or an order of the board, a state, or
6.2federal law which relates to the practice of medicine, or in part regulates the practice of
6.3medicine including without limitation sections604.201 ,
609.344 , and
609.345 , or a state
6.4or federal narcotics or controlled substance law.
6.5(g) Engaging in any unethical conduct; conduct likely to deceive, defraud, or harm
6.6the public, or demonstrating a willful or careless disregard for the health, welfare or safety
6.7of a patient; or medical practice which is professionally incompetent, in that it may create
6.8unnecessary danger to any patient's life, health, or safety, in any of which cases, proof
6.9of actual injury need not be established.
6.10(h) Failure to supervise a physician's assistant or failure to supervise a physician
6.11under any agreement with the board.
6.12(i) Aiding or abetting an unlicensed person in the practice of medicine, except that
6.13it is not a violation of this paragraph for a physician to employ, supervise, or delegate
6.14functions to a qualified person who may or may not be required to obtain a license or
6.15registration to provide health services if that person is practicing within the scope of that
6.16person's license or registration or delegated authority.
6.17(j) Adjudication as mentally incompetent, mentally ill or developmentally disabled,
6.18or as a chemically dependent person, a person dangerous to the public, a sexually
6.19dangerous person, or a person who has a sexual psychopathic personality by a court of
6.20competent jurisdiction, within or without this state. Such adjudication shall automatically
6.21suspend a license for the duration thereof unless the board orders otherwise.
6.22(k) Engaging in unprofessional conduct. Unprofessional conduct shall include
6.23any departure from or the failure to conform to the minimal standards of acceptable
6.24and prevailing medical practice in which proceeding actual injury to a patient need not
6.25be established.
6.26(l) Inability to practice medicine with reasonable skill and safety to patients by
6.27reason of illness, drunkenness, use of drugs, narcotics, chemicals or any other type of
6.28material or as a result of any mental or physical condition, including deterioration through
6.29the aging process or loss of motor skills.
6.30(m) Revealing a privileged communication from or relating to a patient except when
6.31otherwise required or permitted by law.
6.32(n) Failure by a doctor of osteopathy to identify the school of healing in the
6.33professional use of the doctor's name by one of the following terms: osteopathic physician
6.34and surgeon, doctor of osteopathy, or D.O.
7.1(o) Improper management of medical records, including failure to maintain adequate
7.2medical records, to comply with a patient's request made pursuant to sections144.291 to
7.3144.298 or to furnish a medical record or report required by law.
7.4(p) Fee splitting, including without limitation:
7.5(1) paying, offering to pay, receiving, or agreeing to receive, a commission, rebate,
7.6or remuneration, directly or indirectly, primarily for the referral of patients or the
7.7prescription of drugs or devices;
7.8(2) dividing fees with another physician or a professional corporation, unless the
7.9division is in proportion to the services provided and the responsibility assumed by each
7.10professional and the physician has disclosed the terms of the division;
7.11(3) referring a patient to any health care provider as defined in sections144.291 to
7.12144.298 in which the referring physician has a "financial or economic interest," as defined
7.13in section144.6521, subdivision 3 , unless the physician has disclosed the physician's
7.14financial or economic interest in accordance with section144.6521 ; and
7.15(4) dispensing for profit any drug or device, unless the physician has disclosed the
7.16physician's own profit interest.
7.17The physician must make the disclosures required in this clause in advance and in writing
7.18to the patient and must include in the disclosure a statement that the patient is free to
7.19choose a different health care provider. This clause does not apply to the distribution
7.20of revenues from a partnership, group practice, nonprofit corporation, or professional
7.21corporation to its partners, shareholders, members, or employees if the revenues consist
7.22only of fees for services performed by the physician or under a physician's direct
7.23supervision, or to the division or distribution of prepaid or capitated health care premiums,
7.24or fee-for-service withhold amounts paid under contracts established under other state law.
7.25(q) Engaging in abusive or fraudulent billing practices, including violations of the
7.26federal Medicare and Medicaid laws or state medical assistance laws.
7.27(r) Becoming addicted or habituated to a drug or intoxicant.
7.28(s) Prescribing a drug or device for other than medically accepted therapeutic or
7.29experimental or investigative purposes authorized by a state or federal agency or referring
7.30a patient to any health care provider as defined in sections144.291 to 144.298 for services
7.31or tests not medically indicated at the time of referral.
7.32(t) Engaging in conduct with a patient which is sexual or may reasonably be
7.33interpreted by the patient as sexual, or in any verbal behavior which is seductive or
7.34sexually demeaning to a patient.
7.35(u) Failure to make reports as required by section147.111 or to cooperate with an
7.36investigation of the board as required by section147.131 .
8.1(v) Knowingly providing false or misleading information that is directly related
8.2to the care of that patient unless done for an accepted therapeutic purpose such as the
8.3administration of a placebo.
8.4(w) Aiding suicide or aiding attempted suicide in violation of section609.215 as
8.5established by any of the following:
8.6(1) a copy of the record of criminal conviction or plea of guilty for a felony in
8.7violation of section609.215, subdivision 1 or 2;
8.8(2) a copy of the record of a judgment of contempt of court for violating an
8.9injunction issued under section609.215, subdivision 4 ;
8.10(3) a copy of the record of a judgment assessing damages under section609.215,
8.11subdivision 5 ; or
8.12(4) a finding by the board that the person violated section609.215, subdivision
8.131 or 2. The board shall investigate any complaint of a violation of section
609.215,
8.14subdivision 1 or 2.
8.15(x) Practice of a board-regulated profession under lapsed or nonrenewed credentials.
8.16(y) Failure to repay a state or federally secured student loan in accordance with
8.17the provisions of the loan.
8.18(z) Providing interstate telemedicine services other than according to section
8.19147.032
.
8.20(aa) Performing an abortion on a pregnant woman prior to determining if the fetus
8.21has a detectable fetal heartbeat, as required in section 145.4073.
1.3amending Minnesota Statutes 2010, section 147.091, subdivision 1; proposing
1.4coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 145.
1.5BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
1.6 Section 1. [145.4071] LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS.
1.7The legislature finds, according to contemporary medical research, the following:
1.8(1) as many as 30 percent of natural pregnancies end in spontaneous miscarriage;
1.9(2) less than five percent of all natural pregnancies end in spontaneous miscarriage
1.10after detection of fetal cardiac activity;
1.11(3) over 90 percent of in vitro pregnancies survive the first trimester if cardiac
1.12activity is detected in the gestational sac;
1.13(4) nearly 90 percent of in vitro pregnancies do not survive the first trimester where
1.14cardiac activity is not detected in the gestational sac;
1.15(5) fetal heartbeat, therefore, has become a key medical predictor that an unborn
1.16human individual will reach viability and live birth; and
1.17(6) cardiac activity begins at a biologically identifiable moment in time, normally
1.18when the fetal heart is formed in the gestational sac.
1.19 Sec. 2. [145.4072] DEFINITIONS.
1.20For purposes of sections 145.4071 to 145.4073, the following terms have the
1.21meanings given.
1.22(a) "Contraceptive" means a device, drug, or chemical that prevents conception.
2.1(b) "Fetal heartbeat" means cardiac activity or the steady and repetitive rhythmic
2.2contraction of the fetal heart within the gestational sac.
2.3(c) "Fetus" means the human offspring developing during pregnancy from the
2.4moment of conception and includes the embryonic stage of development.
2.5(d) "Gestational age" means the age of an unborn child as calculated from the first
2.6day of the last menstrual period of a pregnant woman.
2.7(e) "Gestational sac" comprises the extra embryonic membranes that envelop the
2.8fetus and is typically visible by ultrasound after the fourth week of pregnancy.
2.9 (f) "Medical emergency" means a condition that in the physician's good faith medical
2.10judgment, based upon the facts known to the physician at that time, so endangers the life
2.11of the pregnant woman or a major bodily function of the pregnant woman as to necessitate
2.12the immediate performance or inducement of an abortion.
2.13(g) "Physician" means a person licensed to practice medicine pursuant to chapter
2.14147, or a physician in training under the supervision of a licensed physician.
2.15(h) "Spontaneous abortion" means a miscarriage or the spontaneous loss of a fetus
2.16before the twentieth week of pregnancy.
2.17(i) "Unborn child" means an individual organism of the species homo sapiens from
2.18fertilization until live birth.
2.19 Sec. 3. [145.4073] PROHIBITED ABORTION; FETAL HEARTBEAT.
2.20 Subdivision 1. Determination of presences of fetal heartbeat. (a) Except when
2.21a medical emergency exists that prevents compliance with this section, no person shall
2.22perform an abortion on a pregnant woman prior to determining whether the fetus has a
2.23detectable fetal heartbeat. Any person who performs an abortion on a pregnant woman
2.24based on the exception provided in this section shall note in the woman's medical record
2.25that a medical emergency necessitating the abortion existed.
2.26(b) A person who intends to perform an abortion on a pregnant woman shall
2.27determine whether there is the presence of a fetal heartbeat of the unborn child according
2.28to standard medical practice. A person shall comply with this paragraph regardless of
2.29whether the commissioner of health has promulgated rules under paragraph (c).
2.30(c) The commissioner of health may promulgate rules describing the appropriate
2.31methods of performing an examination for the presence of a fetal heartbeat of an unborn
2.32child based on standard medical practice.
2.33(d) If a physician performs an abortion on a pregnant woman prior to determining
2.34whether the fetus has a detectable fetal heartbeat, that physician is subject to disciplinary
2.35action under section 147.091.
3.1 Subd. 2. Detected fetal heartbeat; information provided. This subdivision
3.2applies to all abortions that are not otherwise prohibited by state law, except when a
3.3medical emergency exists that prevents compliance with this subdivision.
3.4(a) If the person who intends to perform an abortion on a pregnant woman detects
3.5a fetal heartbeat in the unborn child no later than 24 hours prior to the performance of
3.6the intended abortion, then the following applies: the person intending to perform the
3.7abortion shall inform the pregnant woman in writing that the unborn child has a fetal
3.8heartbeat and, to the best of the person's knowledge, the statistical probability of bringing
3.9the unborn child to term based on the gestational age of the unborn child possessing a
3.10detectable fetal heartbeat.
3.11A person shall comply with this subdivision regardless of whether the commissioner
3.12of health has promulgated rules under paragraph (c).
3.13(b) The pregnant woman shall sign a form acknowledging that she received
3.14information from the person intending to perform the abortion that the unborn child has a
3.15fetal heartbeat and that she is aware of the statistical probability of bringing the unborn
3.16child to term.
3.17(c) The commissioner of health may define and promulgate rules based upon
3.18available medical evidence of the statistical probability of bringing an unborn child to term
3.19based on the gestational age of an unborn child who possesses a detectable fetal heartbeat.
3.20 Subd. 3. Abortion prohibited when fetal heartbeat detected. (a) Except as
3.21provided in paragraph (b), no person shall knowingly perform an abortion on a pregnant
3.22woman with specific intent to cause the termination of the life of the unborn child
3.23whose fetal heartbeat has been detected according to the requirements of subdivision 1.
3.24Any person who acts based on an exception provided paragraph (b) shall so note in the
3.25pregnant woman's medical record and shall specify in the pregnant woman's medical
3.26record which exception the person invoked.
3.27(b) A person is not in violation of paragraph (a) if that person performs a medical
3.28procedure designed or intended, in that person's reasonable medical judgment, to prevent
3.29the death of a pregnant woman or to prevent a serious risk of the substantial and
3.30irreversible impairment of a major bodily function of the pregnant woman.
3.31Any person who performs a medical procedure as described in this paragraph shall
3.32declare in writing, under penalty of perjury, that the medical procedure is necessary, to the
3.33best of that person's reasonable medical judgment, to prevent the death of the pregnant
3.34woman or to prevent a serious risk of the substantial and irreversible impairment of a
3.35major bodily function of the pregnant woman. The person shall also provide in writing,
3.36under penalty of perjury, the type of medical condition the pregnant woman experienced
4.1which required the medical procedure performed as described in paragraph (a), and the
4.2medical rationale for the conclusion that the medical procedure is necessary to prevent the
4.3death of the pregnant woman or to prevent a serious risk of the substantial and irreversible
4.4impairment of a major bodily function of the pregnant woman.
4.5(c) The person who performs a medical procedure as described in paragraph (b) shall
4.6include the required written documentation in the pregnant woman's medical record and
4.7shall maintain a record of the documentation for at least seven years.
4.8(d) A person is not in violation of paragraph (a) if that person has performed an
4.9examination for the presence of a fetal heartbeat utilizing standard medical practice and
4.10that examination does not reveal the presence of a heartbeat, or the person has been
4.11informed by a physician who has performed the examination for fetal heartbeat that the
4.12examination did not reveal a heartbeat.
4.13(e) Whoever violates this subdivision is guilty of a felony and must be sentenced to
4.14imprisonment for not less than six years, but not more than 12 years, and to payment of
4.15a fine of up to $10,000.
4.16 Subd. 4. Record of medical emergency exceptions. Any person performing an
4.17abortion on a pregnant woman carrying an unborn child whose heartbeat has been detected
4.18pursuant to the requirements of subdivision 1 to preserve the health of the pregnant woman
4.19shall set forth in a separate document, under penalty of perjury, the medical condition that
4.20the abortion would assertedly address and the medical rationale for the conclusion that
4.21the abortion is necessary to address that condition. The person shall include this written
4.22documentation in the pregnant woman's medical record and shall maintain a copy in
4.23the person's own records for at least seven years. This documentation requirement is
4.24independent of the provisions in subdivision 3 of this section.
4.25 Subd. 5. Pregnant woman not liable. A pregnant woman on whom an abortion
4.26is performed in violation of subdivision 1 is not guilty of any violation of this section or
4.27of attempting to commit or conspiring to commit any violation of this section and is not
4.28subject to a civil penalty based on that violation.
4.29 Subd. 6. Contraceptives not prohibited. Nothing in this section prohibits the
4.30sale, use, prescription, or administration of a measure, drug, or chemical designed for
4.31contraceptive purposes.
4.32 Subd. 7. Severability. If any one or more provision, section, subdivision, paragraph,
4.33sentence, clause, phrase, or word of sections 145.4071 to 145.4073 or the application
4.34thereof to any person or circumstance is found to be unconstitutional, the same is hereby
4.35declared to be severable and the balance of sections 145.4071 to 145.4073 shall remain
4.36effective notwithstanding such unconstitutionality. The legislature hereby declares
5.1that it would have passed sections 145.4071 to 145.4073, and each provision, section,
5.2subdivision, paragraph, sentence, clause, phrase, or word thereof, irrespective of the fact
5.3that any one or more provision, section, subdivision, paragraph, sentence, clause, phrase,
5.4or word be declared unconstitutional.
5.5 Sec. 4. Minnesota Statutes 2010, section 147.091, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
5.6 Subdivision 1. Grounds listed. The board may refuse to grant a license, may
5.7refuse to grant registration to perform interstate telemedicine services, or may impose
5.8disciplinary action as described in section
5.9conduct is prohibited and is grounds for disciplinary action:
5.10(a) Failure to demonstrate the qualifications or satisfy the requirements for a license
5.11contained in this chapter or rules of the board. The burden of proof shall be upon the
5.12applicant to demonstrate such qualifications or satisfaction of such requirements.
5.13(b) Obtaining a license by fraud or cheating, or attempting to subvert the licensing
5.14examination process. Conduct which subverts or attempts to subvert the licensing
5.15examination process includes, but is not limited to: (1) conduct which violates the
5.16security of the examination materials, such as removing examination materials from the
5.17examination room or having unauthorized possession of any portion of a future, current, or
5.18previously administered licensing examination; (2) conduct which violates the standard of
5.19test administration, such as communicating with another examinee during administration
5.20of the examination, copying another examinee's answers, permitting another examinee
5.21to copy one's answers, or possessing unauthorized materials; or (3) impersonating an
5.22examinee or permitting an impersonator to take the examination on one's own behalf.
5.23(c) Conviction, during the previous five years, of a felony reasonably related to the
5.24practice of medicine or osteopathy. Conviction as used in this subdivision shall include
5.25a conviction of an offense which if committed in this state would be deemed a felony
5.26without regard to its designation elsewhere, or a criminal proceeding where a finding or
5.27verdict of guilt is made or returned but the adjudication of guilt is either withheld or
5.28not entered thereon.
5.29(d) Revocation, suspension, restriction, limitation, or other disciplinary action
5.30against the person's medical license in another state or jurisdiction, failure to report to the
5.31board that charges regarding the person's license have been brought in another state or
5.32jurisdiction, or having been refused a license by any other state or jurisdiction.
5.33(e) Advertising which is false or misleading, which violates any rule of the board,
5.34or which claims without substantiation the positive cure of any disease, or professional
5.35superiority to or greater skill than that possessed by another physician.
6.1(f) Violating a rule promulgated by the board or an order of the board, a state, or
6.2federal law which relates to the practice of medicine, or in part regulates the practice of
6.3medicine including without limitation sections
6.4or federal narcotics or controlled substance law.
6.5(g) Engaging in any unethical conduct; conduct likely to deceive, defraud, or harm
6.6the public, or demonstrating a willful or careless disregard for the health, welfare or safety
6.7of a patient; or medical practice which is professionally incompetent, in that it may create
6.8unnecessary danger to any patient's life, health, or safety, in any of which cases, proof
6.9of actual injury need not be established.
6.10(h) Failure to supervise a physician's assistant or failure to supervise a physician
6.11under any agreement with the board.
6.12(i) Aiding or abetting an unlicensed person in the practice of medicine, except that
6.13it is not a violation of this paragraph for a physician to employ, supervise, or delegate
6.14functions to a qualified person who may or may not be required to obtain a license or
6.15registration to provide health services if that person is practicing within the scope of that
6.16person's license or registration or delegated authority.
6.17(j) Adjudication as mentally incompetent, mentally ill or developmentally disabled,
6.18or as a chemically dependent person, a person dangerous to the public, a sexually
6.19dangerous person, or a person who has a sexual psychopathic personality by a court of
6.20competent jurisdiction, within or without this state. Such adjudication shall automatically
6.21suspend a license for the duration thereof unless the board orders otherwise.
6.22(k) Engaging in unprofessional conduct. Unprofessional conduct shall include
6.23any departure from or the failure to conform to the minimal standards of acceptable
6.24and prevailing medical practice in which proceeding actual injury to a patient need not
6.25be established.
6.26(l) Inability to practice medicine with reasonable skill and safety to patients by
6.27reason of illness, drunkenness, use of drugs, narcotics, chemicals or any other type of
6.28material or as a result of any mental or physical condition, including deterioration through
6.29the aging process or loss of motor skills.
6.30(m) Revealing a privileged communication from or relating to a patient except when
6.31otherwise required or permitted by law.
6.32(n) Failure by a doctor of osteopathy to identify the school of healing in the
6.33professional use of the doctor's name by one of the following terms: osteopathic physician
6.34and surgeon, doctor of osteopathy, or D.O.
7.1(o) Improper management of medical records, including failure to maintain adequate
7.2medical records, to comply with a patient's request made pursuant to sections
7.3144.298 or to furnish a medical record or report required by law.
7.4(p) Fee splitting, including without limitation:
7.5(1) paying, offering to pay, receiving, or agreeing to receive, a commission, rebate,
7.6or remuneration, directly or indirectly, primarily for the referral of patients or the
7.7prescription of drugs or devices;
7.8(2) dividing fees with another physician or a professional corporation, unless the
7.9division is in proportion to the services provided and the responsibility assumed by each
7.10professional and the physician has disclosed the terms of the division;
7.11(3) referring a patient to any health care provider as defined in sections
7.12144.298 in which the referring physician has a "financial or economic interest," as defined
7.13in section
7.14financial or economic interest in accordance with section
7.15(4) dispensing for profit any drug or device, unless the physician has disclosed the
7.16physician's own profit interest.
7.17The physician must make the disclosures required in this clause in advance and in writing
7.18to the patient and must include in the disclosure a statement that the patient is free to
7.19choose a different health care provider. This clause does not apply to the distribution
7.20of revenues from a partnership, group practice, nonprofit corporation, or professional
7.21corporation to its partners, shareholders, members, or employees if the revenues consist
7.22only of fees for services performed by the physician or under a physician's direct
7.23supervision, or to the division or distribution of prepaid or capitated health care premiums,
7.24or fee-for-service withhold amounts paid under contracts established under other state law.
7.25(q) Engaging in abusive or fraudulent billing practices, including violations of the
7.26federal Medicare and Medicaid laws or state medical assistance laws.
7.27(r) Becoming addicted or habituated to a drug or intoxicant.
7.28(s) Prescribing a drug or device for other than medically accepted therapeutic or
7.29experimental or investigative purposes authorized by a state or federal agency or referring
7.30a patient to any health care provider as defined in sections
7.31or tests not medically indicated at the time of referral.
7.32(t) Engaging in conduct with a patient which is sexual or may reasonably be
7.33interpreted by the patient as sexual, or in any verbal behavior which is seductive or
7.34sexually demeaning to a patient.
7.35(u) Failure to make reports as required by section
7.36investigation of the board as required by section
8.1(v) Knowingly providing false or misleading information that is directly related
8.2to the care of that patient unless done for an accepted therapeutic purpose such as the
8.3administration of a placebo.
8.4(w) Aiding suicide or aiding attempted suicide in violation of section
8.5established by any of the following:
8.6(1) a copy of the record of criminal conviction or plea of guilty for a felony in
8.7violation of section
8.8(2) a copy of the record of a judgment of contempt of court for violating an
8.9injunction issued under section
8.10(3) a copy of the record of a judgment assessing damages under section
8.11subdivision 5
8.12(4) a finding by the board that the person violated section
8.131
8.14subdivision 1
8.15(x) Practice of a board-regulated profession under lapsed or nonrenewed credentials.
8.16(y) Failure to repay a state or federally secured student loan in accordance with
8.17the provisions of the loan.
8.18(z) Providing interstate telemedicine services other than according to section
8.20(aa) Performing an abortion on a pregnant woman prior to determining if the fetus
8.21has a detectable fetal heartbeat, as required in section 145.4073.
