Maryland Democrats had an ambitious agenda at the start of the first session of a Gov. Wes Moore’s brand-new term. Here’s a look at which of the hundreds of bills filed made it to Moore’s desk at the end of the 90-day legislative session — and what wasn’t ready for prime time.
Access to abortion
As the national political climate toward abortion access continued to sour, Maryland pushed in the opposite direction during the 2023 session, passing four bills to protect patients and abortion care providers and expand access to reproductive health care and contraception.
House Speaker Adrienne A. Jones of Baltimore County and Senate President Bill Ferguson of Baltimore, both Democrats, sponsored legislation that will allow Marylanders to vote on whether to enshrine the right to “reproductive freedom” — including contraception, fertility treatment and abortion — in the state constitution. Voters will see the question on their ballots during the 2024 election.
Baltimore County Sen. Shelly Hettleman and Baltimore Del. Sandy Rosenberg, both Democrats, ushered a bill to Moore’s desk that would prohibit patient records about reproductive health care to cross state lines through digital health information exchanges without their consent.
[ Maryland stockpiles contested abortion pill as fate of FDA approval hangs in federal court ]
Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee Chair Will Smith of Montgomery County, Prince George’s County Del. Nicole Williams and...
CLAIM: Video claiming President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. had resigned. RATING: FALSE A YouTube video falsely claimed that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. had stepped down from office amid continue...