Committee advances 48‑hour ultrasound requirement for medication abortion after hours of testimony

The House Labor, Health & Social Services Committee advanced House Bill 64, which would require a pregnant person to receive an ultrasound at least 48 hours before receiving medication for a chemical (medication) abortion and to be given the opportunity to view an active ultrasound and, if audible, hear fetal cardiac activity.

Representative Chip Nyman, the bill sponsor, framed the measure as a patient‑safety and compassion provision. He told the committee that chemical abortions have increased and that an ultrasound is necessary to confirm gestational age, rule out ectopic pregnancy and protect a woman's health.

"The performance of an ultrasound is standard of care for any proposed obstetrical or gynecological procedure," Nyman said in his opening remarks, adding that "an ultrasound ... establishes the age and weight and location of that pregnancy." He said the FDA‑approved chemical abortion regimen is authorized only through 10 weeks' gestation and argued that…