In private ceremony, Greitens signs new abortion law

Republican Eric Greitens, a newcomer to elected office, ended the second special session he called in his first six months as governor by approving a law that abortion opponents say will protect women.

The governor signed the measure during a closed-door ceremony in his office in front of more than a dozen lawmakers and anti-abortion lobbyists.

The measure exempts agencies that offer alternatives to abortion from a new St. Louis ordinance barring discrimination against women on the basis of whether they take birth control or have had an abortion.

It also requires that doctors explain the risks of abortion to women 72 hours before an abortion is performed. And, the new law calls for annual inspections of clinics, adds new whistleblower protections from employees of clinics and boosts requirements for pathologists who provide services to abortion facilities.

“The bill is focused on protecting the health and safety of women across Missouri,” said Sen. Andrew Koenig, R-Manchester, who sponsored the legislation.

Alison Dreith, executive director of NARAL Pro Choice Missouri, said the session was “political theater” designed to help Greitens burnish his record for higher office.

“Women in Missouri already face some of nation’s most burdensome restrictions when it comes to accessing reproductive healthcare. Now, Gov. Greitens is trying to make it even more difficult to access basic care. This is a sad day for women and families across Missouri,” Dreith said in a statement issued Wednesday.

The measure comes as Planned Parenthood has filed plans with state health regulators to open at least three new clinics in Columbia, Springfield and Joplin. Currently, St. Louis is the lone facility in Missouri where abortions are performed.

Sen. Bob Onder, R-Lake Saint Louis, said the new law is not an attempt to block Planned Parenthood from opening the new clinics.

“There really is nothing in this bill that prevents clinics from opening, but they have to open under situations in which the health and safety of women is safeguarded,” Onder said.

The new law is the result of a special session that Greitens called six weeks ago to address abortion-related issues. Action on the matter was delayed by scheduling problems for lawmakers, many of whom spend the first five months of the year away from their full-time jobs as they attend the regular session of the Legislature.

The GOP-controlled Senate approved the legislation on Tuesday after four hours of sometimes heated debate.

The cost of the session was expected to top $60,000.

Senate Minority Leader Gina Walsh, D-Bellefontaine Neighbors, said Greitens was using the special session as a way to build up an otherwise empty political résumé.

“You don’t get your way, so you keep calling everybody back (in session) until all of your points are checked off your list. That’s not how this body operates,” Walsh said.

But leaders in the House praised the passage of the measure.

“Obviously we’re pleased by the outcome,” said House Speaker Todd Richardson, R-Poplar Bluff. “I think we got a really strong bill to the governor’s office.”