Committee advances medical-records bill allowing patients to mark miscarriages as non-elective

The House Judiciary Committee favorably recommended first-substitute HB 480, which would allow patients who experienced a miscarriage or a medically indicated abortion to request that their medical record state the procedure was not elective.

Representative Lisonbee, sponsor of the substitute, said she and stakeholders worked with a range of clinicians to define "medically indicated abortion" to include ectopic pregnancy, a deceased fetus, and other exceptions recognized in Utah code. Under the substitute, an individual may ask the health-care provider to include in the health record that the procedure "was not an elective abortion," and the provider must add a note reflecting that request.

Two witnesses from Pro Life Utah — Mary Taylor, president of Pro Life Utah, and Danielle Cypress — spoke in favor of the substitute, telling the committee that coding and software sometimes label miscarriages or medically indicated terminations as "abortion," which can cause additional trauma. Taylor described HB 480 as a "compassionate measure" giving women an option to clarify records; Cypress added that legislative language would bring needed clarity to clinical documentation.

Representative Ochsner moved to adopt the first substitute and later moved the committee to favorably recommend the substitute to the House. The committee held a roll-call vote; the chair announced the motion passed with Representatives Maunga and Miller recorded as voting "No." The substitute now heads to the House floor.

The bill’s sponsors described the measure as narrowly focused on patient-directed record clarification rather than any change to abortion law itself.