NJ Adopts Rules Allowing Non-Physicians To Perform Abortions

NEW JERSEY — Following the New Jersey Board of Medical Examiners' unanimous vote in October to allow non-physicians to administer abortions, Gov. Phil Murphy announced last week that the updated rules concerning abortions in the Garden State have been officially adopted and published in the state registry.

The law formerly on the books only allowed physicians to do abortions and wouldn’t let them be done in medical offices after 14 weeks of pregnancy, something the new rule allows.

Acting Attorney General Andrew J. Bruck called the former rules “outdated” and says the update now gives equal access to “people of color and underserved communities, disproportionately affected by barriers of care.”

The updates were made, according to a news release from Murphy’s office, following “recognized medical and public health studies,” on procedure safety, which reportedly have shown “certain early abortion procedures” can be taken care of by non-physicians.

“At a time when our country is on the verge of severely limiting access to reproductive health care, New Jersey is prioritizing the expansion of these critical services,” Murphy said. “Removing outdated barriers to care ensures that all New Jerseyans have equitable access to reproductive health care.”

The Board of Medical Examiners began exploring the topic following a 2018 subcommittee study on reproductive health care regulations.

RELATED: NJ Abortions By Non-Physicians OK'd By Board Of Medical Examiners

"A great deal of time and effort goes into reviewing every regulatory proposal before the Board, and its unanimous decision signals it was time to implement changes to allow additional qualified professionals to provide needed abortion care," Dr. Scott E. Metzger, President of the State Board of Medical Examiners, said.

The update now permits approximately 11,956 Advanced Practice Nurses, 4,495 Physician Assistants, 393 Certified Nurse Midwives and 18 Certified Midwives, all non-physicians, the opportunity to become trained and credentialed to handle abortion procedures.

Bruck credited Murphy’s Administration with “expanding access to reproductive health and abortion care, even as the right to these services is under attack elsewhere.”

“I thank the Board of Medical Examiners for carefully considering the evidence and reaching a decision to put the health of New Jerseyans first by eliminating medically unnecessary restrictions on care,” he added.

Kaitlyn Wojtowicz, Vice President of Public Affairs, Planned Parenthood Action Fund of New Jersey and member of Thrive New Jersey, thanked the Board of Medical Examiners, saying: "Every New Jerseyan deserves the ability to make their own personal health care decisions, especially when it comes to reproductive health care and abortion.”

Change Faces Pushback From Its Critics

Some individuals didn’t give the Garden State update a warm reception, including Kristen Day, the Executive Director of Democrats for Life of America, who says the Board “opened the door to unsafe, back-alley abortions."

The New Jersey Board of Medical Examiners opened the door to unsafe back-alley abortions. Now you don't need to be a doctor to perform an abortion. Address the high abortion rate in your state @GovMurphy instead of deregulation. Real Dems support regulation, not deregulation.
— Kristen Day (@ProLifeDem) December 7, 2021

“Address the high abortion rate in your state, instead of deregulation,” she tweeted to Murphy. “Real Dems support regulation, not deregulation.”

After the Board of Medical Examiners voted for the rule in October, New Jersey Assembly Republicans reposted a "Truth Bomb" video on their Facebook Page about abortions in New Jersey, statistics they cited placing New Jersey third nationwide in abortion rates.

The video is available to view here.

Assembly Republicans criticized the Board's studies, which they said were from out-of-state scenarios.

In 2017, Assembly Republicans reported 48,110 abortions were performed in New Jersey, which equates to 30 percent of all New Jersey pregnancies and places New Jersey third nationwide for abortion rates, a number they said is now expected to climb.

They say the change “contains elements of bill A4848,” the “Reproductive Freedom Act,” a bill that has been stalled in the legislature, with the following elements, here from the companion Senate Bill:

• Guarantees rights to contraception, abortion and to carry a pregnancy to term.
• Mandates insurance carriers to cover abortion care and contraceptives.
• States that residents and non-residents can choose whether to carry on with their pregnancy or have an abortion in New Jersey, under the State Constitution and "a public entity "may not discriminate on the basis of: sex, including, but not limited to, sex stereotypes, sexual orientation, perceived sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or perceived gender identity or expression; disability; race; ethnicity; age; national origin; immigration status; religion; incarceration status; or economic status."
• Prohibits future laws, rules, ordinances, policies and the like that could "conflict with the provisions" of the Reproductive Freedom Act.
• Tosses out any rules and regulations from the Board of Medical Examiners or the Department of Human Services, that could be in conflict.
• States if the Act conflicts with the religious beliefs of a provider, that provider will need to seek an exclusion and once obtained, will need to provide written notice of what contraceptive health services they decline to provide.
• Establishes a program through New Jersey's Department of Human Services for prenatal and delivery care, plus abortion and contraceptive care reimbursement, with the Department of Human Services encouraged to seek federal funds to help offset reimbursement.
• States coverage can include "voluntary male and female sterilization."
• Guarantees minors the ability to make their own medical decisions, with consent of the parents not needed for a hospital or medical facility to provide surgical care during a minor's pregnancy, getting rid of laws like the "Parental Notification for Abortion Act."
• Mandates that hospitals can't restrict any aspects of the Act.
• States that if a baby dies in utero, the bill negates autopsies and death investigations.

Assembly Republicans assert that data about abortions won't be accurately reported in the future, under the new rule.

“NJ only requires hospitals and ambulatory surgery centers to report certain information on abortions - other NJ facilities do not have to meet reporting requirements,” Assembly Republicans wrote. “Accurate data on the number of NJ abortions and complications will only be pushed further into obscurity.”

Questions or comments about this story? Have a local news tip? Contact me at: jennifer.miller@patch.com.