Definitions.

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As used in this act:

1. "Abortion" means the act of using or prescribing any instrument, medicine, drug or any other substance, device or means with the intent to terminate the pregnancy of a woman known to be pregnant, with knowledge that the termination by those means will with reasonable likelihood cause the death of the unborn child. Such use, prescription or means is not an abortion if done with the intent to:

  • a.save the life or preserve the health of the unborn child,
  • b.remove a dead unborn child caused by spontaneous abortion, accidental trauma or a criminal assault on the pregnant woman or her unborn child,
  • c.remove an ectopic pregnancy, or
  • d.treat a maternal disease or illness for which the prescribed drug is indicated;

2. "Abortion-inducing drug" means a medicine, drug or any other substance prescribed or dispensed with the intent of terminating the pregnancy of a woman known to be pregnant, with knowledge that the termination will with reasonable likelihood cause the death of the unborn child. This includes the off-label use of drugs known to have abortion-inducing properties, which are prescribed specifically with the intent of causing an abortion, such as mifepristone (Mifeprex), misoprostol (Cytotec) and methotrexate. This definition does not apply to drugs that may be known to cause an abortion, but which are prescribed for other medical indications, such as chemotherapeutic agents and diagnostic drugs. The use of such drugs to induce abortion is also known as "medical", "medication", "RU–486", "chemical", "Mifeprex regimen" or "drug-induced" abortion;

3. "Adverse event", according to the Food and Drug Administration, means any untoward medical occurrence associated with the use of a drug in humans, whether or not considered drug-related. It does not include an adverse event or suspected adverse reaction that, had it occurred in a more severe form, might have caused death;

4. "Associated physician" means a person fully licensed and in good standing to practice medicine in the state including medical doctors and doctors of osteopathy, who has entered into an associated physician agreement;

5. "Complication" means any adverse physical or psychological condition arising from the performance of an abortion which includes, but is not limited to, uterine perforation, cervical perforation, infection, heavy or uncontrolled bleeding, hemorrhage, blood clots resulting in pulmonary embolism or deep vein thrombosis, failure to actually terminate the pregnancy, incomplete abortion (retained tissue), pelvic inflammatory disease, endometritis, missed ectopic pregnancy, cardiac arrest, respiratory arrest, renal failure, metabolic disorder, shock, embolism, coma, placenta previa in subsequent pregnancies, preterm delivery in subsequent pregnancies, free fluid in the abdomen, hemolytic reaction due to the administration of ABO-incompatible blood or blood products, adverse reactions to anesthesia and other drugs, subsequent development of breast cancer, psychological complications such as depression, suicidal ideation, anxiety, sleeping disorders, death and any other adverse event as defined by the Food and Drug Administration criteria provided in the Medwatch Reporting System;

6. "Gestational age" means the time that has elapsed since the first day of the woman's last menstrual period, also known as "last menstrual period" or "LMP";

7. "Hospital" means an institution providing medical and surgical treatment and nursing care for sick or injured people, or institutions defined under Section 1-701 of Title 63 of the Oklahoma Statutes;

8. "Manufacturers and distributors" means individuals or entities that create, produce, supply, transport or sell drugs, which include:

  • a.any substances recognized by an official pharmacopoeia or formulary,
  • b.any substances intended for use in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment or prevention of disease,
  • c.any substances other than food intended to affect the structure or any function of the body, or
  • d.any substances intended for use as a component of a medicine but not a device or a component, part or accessory of a device;

9. "Obstetrician/gynecologist", also known as OB/GYN, means a licensed physician who specializes in the care of women during pregnancy and childbirth and in the diagnosis and treatment of diseases of the female reproductive organs and specializes in other women's health issues such as menopause, hormone problems, contraception or birth control, and infertility;

10. "Physician" means any person fully licensed by and in good standing with the State Board of Medical Licensure and Supervision or the State Board of Osteopathic Examiners to practice medicine in this state. The term includes medical doctors and doctors of osteopathy;

11. "Pregnant" or "pregnancy" means that female reproductive condition of having an unborn child in the mother's uterus;

12. "Provide" or "provision" means, when used regarding abortion-inducing drugs, any act of giving, selling, dispensing, administering, transferring possession to or otherwise providing or prescribing an abortion-inducing drug; and

13. "Unborn child" means an individual organism of the species Homo sapiens, beginning at fertilization, until the point of being born-alive as defined in Title 1 U.S.C., Section 8(b).

Added by Laws 2021, c. 578, § 2, eff. Nov. 1, 2021.


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