Gov. Janet Mills Signs Executive Order Safeguarding Abortion Access

After SCOTUS’ decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, Gov. Janet Mills yesterday signed an Executive Order to protect and expand access to abortion in Maine, and protect reproductive health care providers and patients from investigations by other states seeking to prosecute.

“A woman’s right to choose is just that — a woman’s, not a politician’s,” said Gov. Mills. “This Executive Order makes clear that access to reproductive health care, and the health care providers who offer it, will be protected by my Administration.”

Gov. Mills has been a champion for reproductive rights throughout her term, promising her veto pen “will stand in the way of any effort to undermine, rollback, or outright eliminate the right to safe and legal abortion in Maine.”

And she’s delivered on that promise, signing a law allowing physician assistants and advanced practice registered nurses to perform abortions and signing legislation requiring insurance providers to cover abortion care.

But the future of abortion rights is on the ballot in Maine this November. Paul LePage is running on an extreme anti-choice platform, has said abortion is not a priority for him, has refused to rule out signing abortion restrictions into law, and his campaign won’t say whether he would rescind Gov. Mills’ order if elected.

“Maine has made monumental progress in protecting and expanding reproductive rights thanks to Gov. Janet Mills,” said DGA Senior Communications Advisor Christina Amestoy. “Paul LePage has tried to wriggle his way out of answering where he stands, all the while pushing anti-choice rhetoric and staying open to radical and out-of-touch abortion restrictions. Maine deserves a leader who will stand with women and reproductive health care providers — and it’s clear Gov. Mills is that champion.”

###