Doctors Who Provide Abortion, Transgender Care Could Get Legal Protections Under Virginia Bill

Virginia moved closer Monday to shielding doctors from extradition if they provide reproductive or gender-affirming healthcare to out-of-state patients, advancing legislation that underscores the deepening divide over healthcare access and state sovereignty.

Sen. Ghazala Hashmi speaks on the Virginia Senate floor on Feb. 3, 2025. (Photo by Charlotte Rene Woods/ Virginia Mercury)

The Senate narrowly passed Senate Bill 1098, sponsored by Ghazala Hashmi, D-Chesterfield, which would block the extradition of health care providers facing criminal charges in other states for performing medical services that are legal in Virginia. Every Republican opposed the measure.

Health care providers have felt a “chilling effect” amid the national crackdown on abortion and transgender care, Hashmi said. Some states are “already imposing their laws onto other states,” she warned, citing a recent case in Louisiana where a New York doctor was indicted for prescribing an abortion pill online.

Republicans, however, pushed back hard. During 40 minutes of debate, GOP senators raised concerns over minors receiving gender-affirming care or abortion medication from Virginia-based doctors via telemedicine.

“I don’t believe that a Virginia doctor ought to be allowed to advertise their telemedicine services in other states around the country telling families ‘I will prescribe puberty blockers for children in your state,’” said Sen. Mark Obenshain, R-Harrisonburg, arguing the bill “provides an avenue to circumvent the laws of other states.”

But Hashmi’s proposal provides a key exception: Extradition would still be allowed if the patient was physically present in the prosecuting state at the time of the alleged offense and later fled.

Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell, D-Fairfax, questioned the debate over parental rights, saying, “I’m not sure what the fascination is with parents’ rights until we don’t agree with the parents’ decisions.”

Sen. Barbara Favola, D-Arlington, also defended the legislation, emphasizing its focus on existing laws. “This conversation is about honoring our current laws and protecting our providers,” she said.

With the legislative session nearing its midpoint, bills that clear one chamber now move to the other for consideration before reaching the governor’s desk.

by Charlotte Rene Woods, Virginia Mercury

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