Bill > HB2483

This bill establishes the "Respect People's Abortion Decisions Act" by modifying existing Missouri law regarding abortion definitions and regulations. The bill updates terminology throughout the statute, replacing gendered language like "woman" with more inclusive terms like "person" and significantly redefining key concepts. Most notably, it provides a new definition of abortion as "any medical treatment intended to terminate a pregnancy, except for producing a live birth" and redefines viability as the point at which a fetus has a reasonable likelihood of survival outside the uterus without extraordinary medical intervention. The bill explicitly states that the state shall protect a person's right to terminate a pregnancy and prohibits any criminal prosecution for acts authorized under this section. It also includes a severability clause, which means that if any part of the law is found invalid, the rest of the law remains in effect. This proposed legislation appears designed to provide broader legal protections for abortion access and use more neutral, gender-inclusive language in medical and legal contexts.

https://house.mo.gov/Bill.aspx?bill=HB2483&year=2026&code=R