By Rose Conlon – Kansas News Service
The start of the 2025 Kansas legislative session brings renewed efforts to restrict access to abortion in a state that voted overwhelmingly to protect abortion rights.
A group of Republican lawmakers introduced two near-total abortion bans in the first week of the 2025 legislative session at the Kansas Statehouse.
The proposals are largely symbolic and would likely be found to violate the Kansas Constitution — but they could sow uncertainty in a state that has become a key access point for women from across the region seeking abortions.
HB 2009 would prohibit abortion in most cases, with exceptions to save the life of the pregnant person. It would also enable private citizens to sue people who help women obtain abortions for damages of $10,000 or more.
HB 2010 is a total abortion ban that does not include an exception to save the life of the pregnant person. It would give fertilized embryos and fetuses the same rights as people, potentially threatening access to fertility treatments like in vitro fertilization.
Both resemble legislation that has been introduced in past years by a similar group of lawmakers, led by Republican Rep. Brett Fairchild of Stanton. Others signing on this year are Rep. Scott Hill of Abilene, Rep. Samantha Poetter Parshall of Paola, Rep. Bill Rhiley of Wellington and Rep. Kevin Schwertfeger of Turon.
“I ran on a platform that I would introduce strong pro-life legislation that would basically ban abortion or come close to it,” Fairchild said, “and so I’m just trying to fulfill that campaign promise.”
Fairchild said HB 2010 was drafted with input from an extreme wing of the anti-abortion movement who call themselves “abortion abolitionists” because they argue for total abortion bans without exceptions, and have advocated for charging women who obtain abortions with murder.
He acknowledged that the bills are unlikely to become law in Kansas.
“It’ll be hard for them to go anywhere, but it would be an accomplishment just to get a hearing on them,” he said, “just to advocate what we think the ideal position would be.”
The bills come six months after the Kansas Supreme Court reaffirmed its position that the state constitution protects abortion rights. Nearly 60% of Kansas voters elected to preserve those rights in 2022.
Abortion is legal in Kansas until 22 weeks of pregnancy. The state maintains a number of restrictions, including parental consent rules for minors and limits on nonphysician clinicians providing care.
Further restrictions, including a 24-hour waiting period, are currently blocked pending court action.
Emily Wales, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Great Plains, said the bills appeared to be designed to send a “scary signal” to people seeking abortion care.
“Putting out proposed fear-mongering statutes like these are going to very much scare patients,” she said. “We continue to get questions from Kansans and from patients traveling to Kansas about what’s legal and what’s not.”
Wales said reproductive rights groups anticipate additional attempts in 2025 by Republican-controlled state legislatures like Kansas’ to restrict people’s right to travel between states to seek abortion care. Planned Parenthood is also bracing for further attempts to limit access to medication abortion, following significant efforts by anti-abortion groups to do so in 2023 and 2024.
The total bans proposed in Kansas are notably out of step with mainstream anti-abortion groups like Kansans for Life. The organization has championed more incremental legislation aimed at imposing additional requirements on abortion providers and funding crisis pregnancy centers, which provide resources to people with unplanned pregnancies but have been criticized for using misleading tactics to prevent them from obtaining abortions.
“KFL’s agenda will continue to focus on advancing the cause of life this year through proposals that focus on prioritizing compassionate help for women, actually saving lives, and surviving court scrutiny,” said Danielle Underwood, the group’s communications director, in an email.
She said the group would release more information on its 2025 legislative agenda next week.
