Troy Newman, president of Operation Rescue, told a Missouri House Health Care Policy Committee on Wednesday that a proposed abortion-related bill would strengthen abortion requirements in the state and prevent women from crossing the state border to Kansas to receive care.
Operation Rescue is a pro-life, Christian activist organization.
The bill - sponsored by Stanley Cox, R-Sedalia - seeks to strengthen the enforcement of abortion laws in the state.
Cox said the bill has several provisions - one requires a report of the abortion abuse to be sent by the state to the physician and included in a patient's medical records. Another deals with the referral of abortion services to clinics outside the state. Other provisions deal with issues such as coercion and informed consent.
Newman, who testified in favor of the legislation, said abuses to the process of abortion are beyond the normal standard of care.
He wants the process to be more regulated.
He cited a period of time when someone witnessed 26 ambulance runs to the Planned Parenthood in St. Louis.
"It documents an emergency," Newman said. "We don't know if these women are hemorrhaging or have already died."
The bill would require abortion clinics to undergo inspection reports.
Others who testified in favor of the bill believe it adds accountability to abortion laws already passed.
Those in opposition included the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Missouri and Planned Parenthood Advocates in Missouri.
"Silencing doctors and restricting access to safe medical procedures is dangerous," said Ryan Summerford, a representative with Planned Parenthood Advocates in Missouri. "Putting a fear that abortion is unsafe also restricts access to care."
Crystal Williams with the ACLU said her organization opposes the legislation because it leaves a minor who is seeking an abortion nowhere to turn.
"For a frightened vulnerable teen to have nowhere to turn will risk their health and well-being," she said.