{"schema":"abhortion.org/legislation.full/v1","id":"legality-us-ri","type":"legislation","level":"state","jurisdiction":"Rhode Island","as_of_date":"2026-07-12","research_completed_date":"2026-07-12","headline":"Protected; legal to viability","summary":"Rhode Island has codified a statutory right to abortion up to fetal viability, with post-viability bans permitted only to preserve life or health, and protects providers and patients from out-of-state prosecutions through a shield law.","machine_readable_summary":{"legal_classification":"protected_by_statute","gestational_limit_weeks":null,"limit_measured_from":null,"abortion_currently_available":"yes","ban_or_limit_enjoined":false,"mother_expressly_exempt":"unclear","mother_prosecutable_in_practice":false,"self_managed_abortion_criminalized":false,"abortion_charged_as_homicide":false,"fetal_homicide_law":false,"fetal_wrongful_death_action":true,"personhood_language_in_law":false,"personhood_contradiction":false,"medication_abortion_distinct_status":false,"mailing_pills_banned":false,"method_bans":[],"telehealth_prescribing_allowed":true,"physician_only_law":true,"provider_max_penalty":"License discipline for unprofessional conduct; no criminal penalty","helpers_criminally_exposed":false,"travel_assistance_criminalized":false,"civil_bounty_law":false,"shield_state":true,"waiting_period_hours":null,"state_scripted_counseling":false,"ultrasound_required":"none","in_person_visits_required":0,"parental_involvement":"consent_one_parent","judicial_bypass_available":true,"spousal_consent_or_notice_on_books":false,"medicaid_coverage":"broader_than_hyde","private_insurance_restricted":false,"state_funding_posture":"funds_providers","rape_incest_exception":"not_applicable","exceptions_present":["life","physical_health","ectopic_miscarriage_carveout"],"major_pending_change":false},"links":{"html":"https://www.abhortion.org/legislation/ri.html","markdown":"https://www.abhortion.org/legislation/ri.md","summary_json":"https://www.abhortion.org/legislation/ri.json","full_json":"https://www.abhortion.org/legislation/ri-full.json","verbose_json":"https://www.abhortion.org/legislation/ri-verbose.json"},"overview":{"title":"Protected; legal to viability","summary":"Rhode Island has codified a statutory right to abortion up to fetal viability, with post-viability bans permitted only to preserve life or health, and protects providers and patients from out-of-state prosecutions through a shield law.","description":"Abortion is legal in Rhode Island up to the point of fetal viability, which means the stage at which a fetus can survive outside the womb, typically around 24 to 26 weeks of pregnancy. After viability, abortion is permitted only when necessary to preserve the pregnant person's life or health. The state has no mandatory waiting period, no ultrasound requirement, and protects people coming to Rhode Island for care from legal attacks by other states. Both medication abortion and procedural abortion are available in the state. Minors must generally obtain consent from one parent, though a judge can waive that requirement.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-4.13/23-4.13-2.htm"},{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/cases/rhode-island/supreme-court/2022/20-66.html"}]},"sections":{"definitions":{"title":"Abortion defined by informed-consent chapter","summary":"Abortion means administering any medicine or employing any instrument with intent to terminate a pregnancy, excluding completion of an incomplete spontaneous miscarriage.","description":"Rhode Island law defines an abortion as using medication or medical instruments with the intent to end a pregnancy when the person performing the procedure knows the person is pregnant. The definition expressly excludes the management of miscarriages — meaning that treating an incomplete miscarriage does not count as an abortion under the law. The definition does not mention ectopic pregnancy, IVF, or embryos outside the womb.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/rhode-island/title-23/chapter-23-4-7/section-23-4-7-1"}]},"current_status":{"title":"Abortion legal to viability","summary":"The Reproductive Privacy Act of 2019 codifies abortion as legal up to fetal viability, with post-viability abortion allowed when necessary to preserve life or health.","description":"The Reproductive Privacy Act, passed in 2019, guarantees that abortion is legal in Rhode Island up to the point of fetal viability — typically around 24 to 26 weeks of pregnancy. After viability, abortion is allowed only when needed to preserve the pregnant person's life or health. The law was written to protect abortion access even if the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, which it subsequently did in 2022. The Rhode Island Supreme Court upheld the law in 2022.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-4.13/23-4.13-2.htm"},{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/cases/rhode-island/supreme-court/2022/20-66.html"}]},"enforcement_status":{"title":"In full effect; RPA upheld","summary":"The Reproductive Privacy Act is in full effect, having been upheld by the Rhode Island Supreme Court in Benson v. McKee (2022), and U.S. Supreme Court certiorari was denied.","description":"Rhode Island's abortion law is in full effect and faces no active injunction. The law was challenged in court, but the Rhode Island Supreme Court dismissed the challenge for lack of standing in May 2022. The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear a further appeal in 2023. There are no known prosecutorial non-enforcement pledges because there is nothing to decline to enforce — the law protects abortion access rather than restricting it.","verification":"semi_verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/cases/rhode-island/supreme-court/2022/20-66.html"},{"name":"Rhode Island Secretary of State","href":"https://rules.sos.ri.gov/Regulations/part/216-20-10-6?reg_id=8679"}]},"exceptions":{"life":{"title":"Life exception post-viability","type":"life","summary":"Post-viability abortion is permitted when necessary to preserve the life of the pregnant individual.","description":"Rhode Island's abortion law allows abortion after fetal viability when it is necessary to save the pregnant person's life. Because abortion before viability is broadly permitted without restriction beyond informed consent and parental involvement for minors, the life exception primarily operates as a post-viability gateway.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-4.13/23-4.13-2.htm"}]},"physical_health":{"title":"Health exception freely available","type":"physical_health","summary":"Post-viability abortion is permitted to preserve the pregnant individual's health, without requiring physical rather than mental health specification.","description":"Rhode Island's law allows abortion after viability to preserve the pregnant person's health. The statute uses the unmodified word 'health,' which in legal interpretation encompasses both physical and mental health. The physician's medical judgment is the standard, and no independent medical review or corroboration is required.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-4.13/23-4.13-2.htm"}]},"mental_health":{"title":"Not explicitly listed; likely covered","type":"mental_health","summary":"The unqualified word health in the post-viability exception has been read by courts to include mental health, though no Rhode Island court has squarely addressed it.","description":"The word health in Rhode Island's law is not limited to physical health. Courts interpreting similar language have held that health includes mental and emotional wellbeing. But Rhode Island courts have not directly ruled on whether the state's particular law covers mental health. In practice, physicians can rely on their medical judgment about what is necessary for the patient's overall health.","verification":"verified","confidence":"medium","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-4.13/23-4.13-2.htm"}]},"rape":{"title":"Not required; pre-viability access is broad","type":"rape","summary":"Because abortion is legal to viability without condition, no rape exception is needed or exists as a distinct statutory carve-out.","description":"Rhode Island does not have a specific rape exception for abortion. No such exception is necessary because abortion is legal up to fetal viability without restriction. After viability, the life-or-health exception covers any circumstances, including pregnancy resulting from rape, that place the person's health at risk.","verification":"not_applicable","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-4.13/23-4.13-2.htm"}]},"incest":{"title":"Not required; pre-viability access is broad","type":"incest","summary":"No distinct incest exception exists because abortion is legal to viability without restriction; post-viability, the health exception applies.","description":"There is no specific incest exception in Rhode Island law. Because abortion is fully legal up to fetal viability, there is no need for one. After viability, the health-of-the-pregnant-person exception would apply if needed.","verification":"not_applicable","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-4.13/23-4.13-2.htm"}]},"fatal_fetal_anomaly":{"title":"Not required; pre-viability access is broad","type":"fatal_fetal_anomaly","summary":"No distinct fatal fetal anomaly exception exists; pre-viability abortion is unrestricted, and post-viability, the health exception covers severe fetal anomalies.","description":"Rhode Island does not have a separate exception for fatal fetal anomalies. Because abortion is legal to viability without restriction, no specific exception is needed. After viability, a diagnosis of a fatal fetal anomaly could support the physician's medical judgment that abortion is necessary to preserve the pregnant person's health.","verification":"not_applicable","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-4.13/23-4.13-2.htm"}]},"ectopic_miscarriage_carveout":{"title":"Miscarriage management excluded from definition","type":"ectopic_miscarriage_carveout","summary":"The statutory definition of abortion expressly excludes treatment for incomplete spontaneous miscarriage; ectopic pregnancy treatment falls outside the definition.","description":"Rhode Island law explicitly says that treating an incomplete miscarriage is not an abortion. Ectopic pregnancy treatment, which involves a pregnancy outside the uterus that can never result in a live birth, is also not addressed by the abortion definition and can be treated without restriction.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/rhode-island/title-23/chapter-23-4-7/section-23-4-7-1"}]}},"methods":{"procedural_surgical":{"title":"Legal to viability; no method bans","summary":"Procedural abortion is legal to viability; the state's own partial-birth abortion ban was repealed in 2019, though the federal ban (18 U.S.C. § 1531) remains in effect.","description":"Surgical abortion is legal in Rhode Island through fetal viability. The state repealed its own partial-birth abortion ban in 2019 when it passed the Reproductive Privacy Act, so there are no state-level method bans. The federal Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003 still applies, making so-called partial-birth abortion illegal nationwide. There are no D&E bans or other method-specific prohibitions in Rhode Island.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-4.13/23-4.13-2.htm"},{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/BillText19/HouseText19/H5125A.pdf"}]},"medication":{"title":"Legal; telehealth permitted","summary":"Medication abortion (mifepristone/misoprostol) is legal to viability, available via telehealth, and not subject to any dispensing or mailing restriction unique to Rhode Island.","description":"Medication abortion — the use of pills like mifepristone and misoprostol — is legal in Rhode Island up to fetal viability. Patients can receive abortion medication through telehealth and by mail. Rhode Island has no laws restricting how medication abortion is dispensed, and its shield law explicitly protects providers who prescribe and mail pills to patients in other states. Providers must still follow FDA rules, but no additional Rhode Island-specific restrictions apply.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-101/23-101-2.htm"}]},"self_managed":{"title":"No criminal exposure for pregnant person","summary":"Rhode Island has no statute criminalizing self-managed abortion, and the Reproductive Privacy Act reflects a protective posture toward individuals terminating their own pregnancies.","description":"There is no law in Rhode Island making it a crime for a pregnant person to end their own pregnancy. The state's legal framework is built around protecting the right of individuals to make their own reproductive decisions. While no statute explicitly says a pregnant person may not be prosecuted, the criminal code contains no abortion-related offense applicable to the pregnant person, and the Reproductive Privacy Act gives individuals, not the state, authority over their pregnancies prior to viability.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-4.13/23-4.13-2.htm"}]}},"actors":{"who_may_perform":{"title":"Physician-only under informed-consent law","summary":"The informed-consent statute contemplates a physician performing the abortion, but no statute expressly bars advanced-practice clinicians; the RPA does not specify a provider type.","description":"Rhode Island's informed-consent law refers to the physician who is to perform the abortion, suggesting that a licensed physician must perform the procedure. However, the Reproductive Privacy Act itself does not specify who may provide abortion care. The state's former abortion-facility regulation that required physician performance was repealed in 2023. In practice, advanced-practice clinicians such as nurse practitioners and certified nurse midwives may provide medication abortion under Rhode Island's broad scope-of-practice laws, though this is not explicitly addressed by statute.","verification":"verified","confidence":"medium","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/rhode-island/title-23/chapter-23-4-7/section-23-4-7-3"},{"name":"Rhode Island Secretary of State","href":"https://rules.sos.ri.gov/Regulations/part/216-20-10-6?reg_id=8679"}]},"criminal_civil_exposure":{"pregnant_woman":{"title":"No criminal or civil exposure","summary":"No Rhode Island statute criminalizes the pregnant person for obtaining, procuring, or self-managing an abortion; the RPA affirmatively protects her right to terminate pregnancy prior to viability.","description":"The pregnant person faces no criminal or civil liability under Rhode Island law for obtaining an abortion or self-managing one. The law protects her right to make reproductive decisions and imposes no penalty on the person who receives the abortion. This is consistent across all methods — procedural, medication, and self-managed.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-4.13/23-4.13-2.htm"}]},"physician":{"title":"License discipline only","summary":"A physician who knowingly violates post-viability restrictions faces professional discipline for unprofessional conduct; there is no criminal penalty.","description":"Physicians who perform abortion in Rhode Island face no criminal penalties. The only legal consequence for a physician who breaks the rules — primarily, performing a post-viability abortion without a life-or-health justification or failing to obtain proper informed consent — is professional discipline from the medical licensing board. This can include license revocation or suspension. There are no fines or jail time for abortion providers.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-4.13/23-4.13-2.htm"},{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/rhode-island/title-23/chapter-23-4-7/section-23-4-7-7"}]},"prescriber_pharmacist":{"title":"No distinct criminal exposure","summary":"Non-physician prescribers and pharmacists face no distinct criminal exposure; they could theoretically face license discipline if their conduct constitutes unprofessional conduct.","description":"Advanced-practice clinicians who prescribe medication abortion and pharmacists who dispense the pills face no specific criminal exposure under Rhode Island law. Because the state's regulatory scheme targets the physician performing the abortion, and because the penalty is professional discipline rather than criminal penalties, the exposure for prescribers and pharmacists is limited to possible license consequences for violating standards of professional conduct.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-101/23-101-2.htm"}]},"nurses_and_staff":{"title":"No criminal exposure","summary":"Nurses and clinical staff face no criminal exposure for assisting lawful abortions; the born-alive statute creates a limited duty of care post-birth.","description":"Nurses and other clinic staff are not at risk of criminal prosecution for assisting with abortion care in Rhode Island. The law imposes no criminal penalty for participating in an abortion. The only relevant obligation applies to the extremely rare case of an infant born alive during an attempted abortion, where nurses and other licensed medical personnel must provide reasonable medical care.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/rhode-island/title-11/chapter-11-9/section-11-9-18"}]},"other_helpers":{"title":"No criminal or civil exposure","summary":"No Rhode Island statute imposes criminal or civil liability on friends, family, employers, or others who assist with funding, transportation, or logistical support for abortion.","description":"People who help someone obtain an abortion — whether by driving them to a clinic, paying for the procedure, or providing other support — face no legal risk under Rhode Island law. There is no aiding and abetting abortion statute, no civil bounty law, and no restriction on funding or assisting with abortion travel.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-101/23-101-2.htm"}]}}},"aiding_and_assisting":{"travel_assistance":{"title":"No prohibition; shield law protects","summary":"Helping someone travel out of state for abortion is not criminalized; Rhode Island has enacted a shield law to protect against out-of-state prosecutions.","description":"Rhode Island imposes no restrictions on helping someone travel to obtain an abortion, whether within or outside the state. The state has also passed a shield law that blocks Rhode Island agencies from cooperating with out-of-state investigations targeting people who help others access abortion care, and allows people sued in other states to countersue.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-101/23-101-2.htm"},{"name":"Office of Governor Daniel J. McKee","href":"https://governor.ri.gov/executive-orders/executive-order-22-28"}]},"funding":{"title":"No restriction on private funding","summary":"No Rhode Island law restricts abortion funds, charitable assistance, employer benefits, or personal financial assistance for abortion care.","description":"There are no Rhode Island laws that stop people from paying for someone else's abortion, donating to abortion funds, or having employers cover travel costs for abortion care. Organizations and individuals can freely fund abortion care in the state.","verification":"not_applicable","confidence":"high"},"mailing_pills":{"title":"Not prohibited; shield law protects","summary":"Mailing abortion medication into or within Rhode Island is not prohibited, and providers who mail pills are protected by the state's shield law.","description":"There is no Rhode Island law against mailing abortion pills into or within the state. The shield law that was enacted in 2024 specifically protects healthcare providers who mail medication to patients in other states, as long as the provider is licensed in Rhode Island and acting from within the state. Federal law and FDA rules still apply, but Rhode Island imposes no additional restrictions.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-101/23-101-2.htm"}]},"providing_information":{"title":"No liability for information or referrals","summary":"Providing information about abortion, including referrals and websites, is not subject to criminal or civil liability in Rhode Island.","description":"Telling someone where to get an abortion, providing a website link, or making a referral is not against the law in Rhode Island. The state has no law restricting the free exchange of information about abortion services, and such speech is protected by the First Amendment.","verification":"not_applicable","confidence":"high"},"civil_bounty":{"title":"No civil bounty law","summary":"Rhode Island has no SB8-style private civil enforcement mechanism; no person may sue another for performing, receiving, or assisting an abortion.","description":"Rhode Island does not have a law like Texas's SB8 that lets private citizens sue anyone who helps with an abortion. No private person can bring a lawsuit against abortion providers, patients, or helpers. Instead, the state's shield law goes in the opposite direction by giving people sued in other states the right to countersue.","verification":"semi_verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-101/INDEX.htm"}]}},"procedural_requirements":{"waiting_period":{"title":"No mandatory waiting period","summary":"Rhode Island imposes no mandatory delay between abortion counseling and the procedure; the informed-consent process may occur on the same day as the abortion.","description":"Rhode Island does not require a person seeking an abortion to wait any period of time between receiving information and having the procedure. A person can receive counseling and have the abortion on the same day. This means only one trip to the clinic is needed.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-4.7/23-4.7-2.htm"}]},"mandatory_counseling":{"title":"Standard informed consent; no state-scripted materials","summary":"Rhode Island requires standard medical informed-consent disclosure but does not mandate state-scripted counseling materials or medically contested statements.","description":"Rhode Island law requires that before an abortion, the patient must be told that she is pregnant, the estimated gestational age, the nature of the procedure, and the material medical risks. This is essentially what doctors must tell patients before any medical procedure. There is no requirement to read a state-prepared script, and the law does not require the provider to make statements that medical organizations consider inaccurate or misleading.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/rhode-island/title-23/chapter-23-4-7/section-23-4-7-3"},{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/rhode-island/title-23/chapter-23-4-7/section-23-4-7-5"}]},"ultrasound_requirement":{"title":"No ultrasound requirement","summary":"Rhode Island law does not require an ultrasound before abortion; neither mandatory performance nor display is required.","description":"Rhode Island does not require a person seeking an abortion to have an ultrasound, nor does it require that an ultrasound image be shown or described. This is in contrast to states that mandate ultrasounds as part of the abortion process.","verification":"not_applicable","confidence":"high"},"in_person_visits":{"title":"One in-person visit sufficient","summary":"Because there is no waiting period and no requirement for in-person counseling, a single in-person visit is sufficient for both medication and procedural abortion.","description":"Because Rhode Island has no waiting period and allows counseling to happen the same day as the procedure, a person can get an abortion in a single visit. Medication abortion may not require any in-person visit at all if obtained via telehealth.","verification":"semi_verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/rhode-island/title-23/chapter-23-4-7/section-23-4-7-2"}]}},"minors":{"parental_involvement":{"title":"One-parent consent; judicial bypass available","summary":"An unemancipated minor under 18 who has not married must obtain consent from one parent or guardian, or obtain a judicial bypass from family court.","description":"In Rhode Island, if a pregnant person is under 18 and not married or legally emancipated, they generally need to get consent from one parent before having an abortion. If they cannot or do not want to involve a parent, they can go to family court and ask a judge to approve the abortion instead. The court process is confidential and is supposed to be handled quickly.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-4.7/23-4.7-6.HTM"}]},"judicial_bypass":{"title":"Maturity or best-interests standard","summary":"A family court judge may authorize an abortion if the minor is mature enough to give informed consent or if abortion is in her best interests, with confidentiality and expedited proceedings.","description":"A minor who does not want to or cannot get a parent's consent can go to family court and ask a judge for permission instead. The judge must approve the abortion if the minor is mature enough to make the decision on her own, or if the abortion is in her best interests even if she is not mature. The court hearing is confidential and given priority so it can happen quickly. The minor gets a guardian ad litem (a court-appointed advocate) to represent her.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-4.7/23-4.7-6.HTM"}]}},"paternal_spousal_rights":{"consent_or_notice_laws":{"title":"Repealed; no spousal notice on books","summary":"Rhode Island's spousal-notice requirement (Chapter 23-4.8) was repealed in 2019 by the Reproductive Privacy Act; no spousal or paternal consent law remains.","description":"Rhode Island used to have a law requiring that a spouse be notified before an abortion. That law was repealed in 2019 when the Reproductive Privacy Act was passed. Today, there is no law requiring a spouse, partner, or the biological father to be notified or to consent to an abortion.","verification":"semi_verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/BillText/BillText19/HouseText19/H5125B.pdf"}]},"enforceability":{"title":"Not applicable; law repealed","summary":"No enforceability question arises because the spousal-notice law was repealed in 2019; even if still on the books, it would be unconstitutional under Danforth and Casey.","description":"Since the spousal notice law was fully repealed, there is no enforceability question. Even if it had not been repealed, the U.S. Supreme Court decisions in Danforth (1976) and Casey (1992) made clear that spousal consent and notice requirements are unconstitutional. After the Dobbs decision in 2022, Rhode Island could theoretically reenact such a law, but it has not done so.","verification":"semi_verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia / U.S. Supreme Court","href":"https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/505/833/"}]},"other_paternal_rights":{"title":"No paternal rights over abortion decision","summary":"The father has no legal right to veto, delay, or be notified of an abortion; a viable fetus may support a wrongful-death action by a parent.","description":"A biological father or partner has no legal right to prevent, delay, or be notified of an abortion in Rhode Island. The decision belongs to the pregnant person alone. However, if a viable fetus is killed by someone else's wrongful act (such as in a car accident), the parent may be able to bring a wrongful-death lawsuit.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/cases/rhode-island/supreme-court/1991/587-a-2d-67.html"},{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/cases/rhode-island/supreme-court/1978/365-a-2d-748.html"}]}},"fetal_personhood":{"fetal_homicide_law":{"title":"No fetal homicide statute in force","summary":"The Rhode Island fetal-homicide statute (§ 11-23-5), which criminalized the killing of an unborn quick child, has been repealed.","description":"Rhode Island no longer has a fetal homicide law. The old statute that made it a crime to kill an unborn quick child was repealed. The regular homicide laws (murder, manslaughter) apply only to born persons. This means that causing the death of a fetus by an act of violence against a pregnant person is not charged as a separate homicide in Rhode Island.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/rhode-island/title-11/chapter-11-23"}]},"wrongful_death":{"title":"Viable fetus only; nonviable excluded","summary":"A viable fetus is a person for wrongful-death actions; a nonviable fetus is not, under Miccolis v. Amica (1991).","description":"In Rhode Island, if a viable fetus (one that could survive outside the womb) dies because of someone else's negligent or wrongful act, the parent can bring a wrongful-death lawsuit. But a nonviable fetus — one too early in pregnancy to survive outside the womb — does not qualify as a person for wrongful-death claims. The Rhode Island Supreme Court drew this line in a 1991 decision.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/cases/rhode-island/supreme-court/1991/587-a-2d-67.html"}]},"personhood_definition":{"title":"No fetal-personhood definition in law","summary":"Rhode Island has no statutory or constitutional definition treating a fetus as a person from conception; the 1986 personhood ballot measure was defeated.","description":"Rhode Island law does not define a fetus as a person. Voters rejected a 1986 ballot measure that would have amended the constitution to give unborn offspring at every stage of their biological development beginning with fertilization a paramount right to life. The state constitution today explicitly says that nothing in its equal-protection and due-process article shall be construed to grant or secure any right relating to abortion or the funding thereof, which prevents courts from finding either an abortion right or a fetal right to life in the state constitution.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"FindLaw","href":"https://codes.findlaw.com/ri/rhode-island-constitution/ri-const-art-i-sect-2"},{"name":"Ballotpedia","href":"https://ballotpedia.org/Rhode_Island_Question_14,_Constitutional_Right_to_Life_and_Abortion_Prohibited_Amendment_(1986)"}]},"contradictions_analysis":"Rhode Island is internally consistent on fetal personhood in a way that favors abortion access. The state repealed its fetal-homicide statute, rejected a fetal-personhood constitutional amendment, and codified a statutory right to abortion. The only tension is between the wrongful-death line of cases — which treats a viable fetus as a person for civil recovery purposes — and the RPA's treatment of the fetus as not a rights-holder. This is a tension present in virtually every state that recognizes both abortion rights and fetal wrongful-death actions, and it reflects a pragmatic choice: the wrongful-death cause of action compensates grieving parents when a wanted pregnancy is lost through another's negligence, while the abortion framework protects the pregnant person's autonomy over whether to continue the pregnancy. Rhode Island's Supreme Court reconciled these by tying wrongful-death standing to viability — a stage at which the state's interest in fetal life also becomes cognizable under the RPA. The born-alive statute (§ 11-9-18) treats an infant born alive as a person, but this is not a fetal personhood concept; it applies post-birth and is consistent with the RPA's express preservation of that statute. The state constitution's Art. I, § 2 abortion-funding clause is notable in that it blocks both pro-choice and pro-life constitutional interpretations — a symmetry that has kept Rhode Island's abortion debate in the legislature, not the courts."},"telehealth_and_interstate":{"telehealth_prescribing":{"title":"Telehealth permitted; no state restriction","summary":"Abortion medication may be prescribed via telehealth to a patient in Rhode Island; no state law requires an in-person visit for medication abortion.","description":"A person in Rhode Island can get a prescription for abortion pills through a telehealth appointment. No Rhode Island law requires an in-person visit for medication abortion. Both in-state and out-of-state providers can prescribe by telehealth, though out-of-state prescribers must comply with Rhode Island's general telehealth and licensure rules.","verification":"not_applicable","confidence":"high"},"out_of_state_travel":{"title":"Travel out of state not restricted","summary":"Rhode Island does not restrict residents from traveling out of state for abortion, and no statute attempts to reach conduct occurring outside the state.","description":"Rhode Island places no legal barriers on residents who want to travel to another state for an abortion. The state does not try to regulate or punish out-of-state conduct. People are free to travel to Massachusetts, Connecticut, or anywhere else for abortion care without legal consequence.","verification":"not_applicable","confidence":"high"},"shield_or_hostile_laws":{"title":"Strong shield law enacted 2024","summary":"Rhode Island enacted a comprehensive shield law in 2024 blocking cooperation with out-of-state abortion investigations and creating a cause of action against hostile litigation.","description":"Rhode Island's Healthcare Provider Shield Act, which took effect in June 2024, is one of the strongest shield laws in the country. It prohibits Rhode Island state agencies, including law enforcement, from helping other states investigate or prosecute anyone for providing or receiving abortion care that is legal in Rhode Island. It blocks extradition for out-of-state charges related to abortion. It allows people who are sued in other states for Rhode Island abortion care to countersue. And it protects Rhode Island providers who serve patients located in states with abortion bans.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-101/23-101-2.htm"},{"name":"Office of Governor Daniel J. McKee","href":"https://governor.ri.gov/executive-orders/executive-order-22-28"}]}},"funding_and_insurance":{"medicaid":{"title":"Full abortion coverage; Hyde limits removed","summary":"The Equality in Abortion Coverage Act (2023) repealed the ban on state Medicaid abortion coverage; Rhode Island Medicaid now covers abortion without Hyde restriction.","description":"Since May 2023, Rhode Island's Medicaid program covers abortion care. Before that, state law restricted Medicaid to covering abortion only in cases of rape, incest, or life endangerment — matching federal Hyde Amendment limits. The Equality in Abortion Coverage Act removed those restrictions, so Rhode Island Medicaid now covers all abortion services. The state uses only state funds (not federal matching dollars) for abortions beyond Hyde categories, as required by federal law.","verification":"semi_verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/PublicLaws/law23/law23017.htm"},{"name":"Rhode Island Executive Office of Health and Human Services","href":"https://eohhs.ri.gov/providers-partners/provider-directories/physician-medical-services/equality-abortion-coverage-act"}]},"private_insurance":{"title":"No restriction; coverage permitted","summary":"Rhode Island imposes no ban on private-insurance coverage of abortion; the EACA removed restrictions on state-employee plans.","description":"Private insurance companies in Rhode Island may cover abortion without restriction. The Equality in Abortion Coverage Act removed the ban on abortion coverage in state employee health plans, so public employees now have abortion coverage through their insurance. There is no mandate requiring private plans to cover abortion — coverage depends on the specific plan.","verification":"semi_verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/PublicLaws/law23/law23017.htm"}]},"exchange_plans":{"title":"Plans may cover; religious exemption available","summary":"Rhode Island's health benefit exchange requires at least one plan at each coverage level to exclude abortion for religious exemption purposes, but does not otherwise restrict coverage.","description":"On Rhode Island's health insurance marketplace (HealthSource RI), insurance plans can choose whether to cover abortion. At least one plan at each level of coverage must be available that excludes abortion coverage for religious employers. Federal law prohibits the use of federal premium tax credits for abortion services beyond the Hyde exceptions, so plans that cover abortion beyond Hyde must segregate funds.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/rhode-island/title-42/chapter-42-157/section-42-157-3"}]},"state_funding_of_providers":{"title":"No defunding; EACA expanded public funding","summary":"Rhode Island does not defund abortion providers; the 2023 EACA expanded public funding to cover abortion through Medicaid and state-employee plans.","description":"Rhode Island does not have a law that bars state funding from going to organizations that provide abortions. The state's 2023 Equality in Abortion Coverage Act went in the opposite direction by expanding public funding to cover abortion care for Medicaid recipients and state employees. Organizations like Planned Parenthood are not excluded from state funding programs because they provide abortion care.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"FindLaw","href":"https://codes.findlaw.com/ri/rhode-island-constitution/ri-const-art-i-sect-2"}]}}},"penalties":[{"actor":"Physician","offense":"Post-viability termination without life-or-health necessity; failure to obtain informed consent","penalty":"Unprofessional conduct — license denial, revocation, or discipline by Board of Medical Licensure and Discipline; civil liability for failure to obtain informed consent (prima facie evidence). No criminal penalty.","verification":"verified","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-4.13/23-4.13-2.htm"},{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/rhode-island/title-23/chapter-23-4-7/section-23-4-7-7"}]},{"actor":"Nurses and licensed medical personnel","offense":"Knowing and intentional failure to provide reasonable medical care to infant born alive during abortion","penalty":"Felony — fine up to $5,000, imprisonment up to 5 years, or both. If death results: manslaughter.","verification":"verified","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/rhode-island/title-11/chapter-11-9/section-11-9-18"}]},{"actor":"Pregnant person","offense":"None","penalty":"No criminal or civil penalty exists for obtaining, procuring, or self-managing an abortion.","verification":"semi_verified"}],"recent_changes":[{"date":"2019-06-19","event":"The Reproductive Privacy Act (RPA) is signed into law by Governor Gina Raimondo, codifying the right to abortion up to fetal viability and repealing the state's partial-birth abortion ban and spousal-notice requirement.","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/BillText/BillText19/HouseText19/H5125B.pdf"}]},{"date":"2022-05-04","event":"The Rhode Island Supreme Court upholds the RPA in Benson v. McKee, dismissing a constitutional challenge for lack of standing.","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/cases/rhode-island/supreme-court/2022/20-66.html"}]},{"date":"2022-06-24","event":"Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization is decided, overturning Roe v. Wade. The RPA remains in effect, and Rhode Island's abortion protections are unaffected.","sources":[{"name":"U.S. Supreme Court","href":"https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/597/19-1392/"}]},{"date":"2022-07-05","event":"Governor Daniel McKee issues Executive Order 22-28, barring state agencies from cooperating with out-of-state investigations related to reproductive healthcare and declining interstate extradition for abortion-related charges.","sources":[{"name":"Office of Governor Daniel J. McKee","href":"https://governor.ri.gov/executive-orders/executive-order-22-28"}]},{"date":"2023-01-09","event":"The U.S. Supreme Court denies certiorari in Doe v. McKee, No. 22-201, ending the federal appeal of Benson v. McKee.","sources":[{"name":"U.S. Supreme Court","href":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/22/22-201/236882/20220901130349933_Petition%20Brief.pdf"}]},{"date":"2023-05-18","event":"The Equality in Abortion Coverage Act (EACA) is signed into law, adding abortion coverage to Rhode Island Medicaid and repealing the abortion-coverage exclusion for state-employee health plans.","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/PublicLaws/law23/law23017.htm"}]},{"date":"2023-07-13","event":"Rhode Island's abortion-facility regulation (216-RICR-20-10-6), which imposed targeted regulations on abortion providers, is repealed.","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island Secretary of State","href":"https://rules.sos.ri.gov/Regulations/part/216-20-10-6?reg_id=8679"}]},{"date":"2024-06-25","event":"The Healthcare Provider Shield Act takes effect, providing comprehensive protections for providers and patients against out-of-state abortion-related legal actions.","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island General Assembly","href":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-101/23-101-2.htm"}]}],"pending_changes":[{"name":"Interstate shield-law challenges (Louisiana and Texas cases against New York physician)","type":"litigation","status":"Pending in federal courts; Rhode Island not a party but its shield law could be affected by the legal principles established.","effect":"If federal courts hold that shield-law protections are unconstitutional or preempted, Rhode Island's Healthcare Provider Shield Act could be challenged or limited in effect. Rhode Island providers who serve out-of-state patients by telehealth could face exposure.","sources":[{"name":"Rhode Island Current","href":"https://rhodeislandcurrent.com/2025/02/18/two-states-are-coming-after-a-new-york-doctor-for-mailing-abortion-pills-heres-whats-next"}]},{"name":"2025 Anti-abortion bills (H5295, H5296, H5661)","type":"legislation","status":"All three bills failed to pass during the 2025 legislative session.","effect":"If reintroduced and passed in a future session, H5296 would have expanded born-alive protections with felony penalties; H5661 would have expanded wrongful-death actions for fetal death; H5295 would have imposed additional abortion restrictions. All were defeated.","sources":[{"name":"ACLU of Rhode Island","href":"https://www.riaclu.org/legislation/anti-abortion-rights-legislation-h-5295-h-5296-h-5661"}]}],"key_authorities":[{"name":"Reproductive Privacy Act","citation":"R.I. Gen. Laws § 23-4.13-1 et seq. (P.L. 2019, ch. 27)","type":"statute","url":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-4.13/23-4.13-2.htm","why":"The cornerstone of Rhode Island abortion law, codifying a statutory right to abortion up to viability and post-viability for life or health."},{"name":"Informed Consent for Abortion","citation":"R.I. Gen. Laws § 23-4.7-1 through § 23-4.7-8","type":"statute","url":"https://law.justia.com/codes/rhode-island/title-23/chapter-23-4-7/","why":"Establishes written informed-consent requirements, parental consent for minors, and physician liability for violations."},{"name":"Healthcare Provider Shield Act","citation":"R.I. Gen. Laws § 23-101-1 et seq. (P.L. 2024, chs. 260, 261)","type":"statute","url":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-101/23-101-2.htm","why":"Comprehensive shield law protecting providers and patients from out-of-state investigations and creating a cause of action against hostile litigation."},{"name":"Equality in Abortion Coverage Act","citation":"2023 R.I. Pub. Laws ch. 17 (2023-H 5006, 2023-S 32)","type":"statute","url":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/PublicLaws/law23/law23017.htm","why":"Expanded abortion coverage to Medicaid and state-employee plans, removing decades-old restrictions on public funding of abortion."},{"name":"Born-Alive Infant Protection","citation":"R.I. Gen. Laws § 11-9-18","type":"statute","url":"https://law.justia.com/codes/rhode-island/title-11/chapter-11-9/section-11-9-18","why":"Imposes a felony duty of care on medical personnel for infants born alive during attempted abortion; expressly preserved by the RPA."},{"name":"Benson v. McKee","citation":"273 A.3d 121 (R.I. 2022)","type":"case","url":"https://law.justia.com/cases/rhode-island/supreme-court/2022/20-66.html","why":"Rhode Island Supreme Court upheld the RPA against constitutional challenge; U.S. Supreme Court denied certiorari."},{"name":"Miccolis v. Amica Mutual Insurance Co.","citation":"587 A.2d 67 (R.I. 1991)","type":"case","url":"https://law.justia.com/cases/rhode-island/supreme-court/1991/587-a-2d-67.html","why":"Established that a nonviable fetus is not a person for wrongful-death purposes, limiting fetal-personhood theories in civil law."},{"name":"Presley v. Newport Hospital","citation":"365 A.2d 748 (R.I. 1976)","type":"case","url":"https://law.justia.com/cases/rhode-island/supreme-court/1978/365-a-2d-748.html","why":"Held that a viable fetus is a person under the Rhode Island Wrongful Death Act, establishing viability as the dividing line for fetal civil rights."},{"name":"Rhode Island Constitution Art. I, § 2","citation":"R.I. Const. Art. I, § 2","type":"constitution","url":"https://codes.findlaw.com/ri/rhode-island-constitution/ri-const-art-i-sect-2","why":"Contains the clause that blocks judicial recognition of both abortion rights and fetal-personhood rights under the state constitution."},{"name":"Repeal of Abortion Facility Regulations","citation":"216-RICR-20-10-6 (repealed effective July 13, 2023)","type":"regulation","url":"https://rules.sos.ri.gov/Regulations/part/216-20-10-6?reg_id=8679","why":"Removed targeted regulation of abortion providers (TRAP rules), eliminating physician-only and facility-specific requirements."},{"name":"Conscience Protection (Nonparticipation)","citation":"R.I. Gen. Laws § 23-17-11","type":"statute","url":"https://law.justia.com/codes/rhode-island/title-23/chapter-23-17/section-23-17-11","why":"Protects physicians and healthcare personnel from being compelled to participate in abortion or sterilization procedures contrary to their beliefs."},{"name":"1986 Question 14 — Fetal Personhood Amendment","citation":"Rhode Island Constitutional Convention, Resolution 86-00212-A (Nov. 4, 1986)","type":"ballot_measure","url":"https://ballotpedia.org/Rhode_Island_Question_14,_Constitutional_Right_to_Life_and_Abortion_Prohibited_Amendment_(1986)","why":"Voters rejected (65.81% No) a constitutional amendment that would have established fetal personhood from fertilization and prohibited abortion and public funding."}],"research_notes":{"overall_confidence":"high","editor_notes":"The 2025 Rhode Island legislative session has concluded; anti-abortion bills H5295, H5296, and H5661 did not pass. Re-verify before publication that no special session has been called. The Health Care Provider Shield Act is new (2024) and its provisions — particularly the interstate telehealth protections — should be monitored for legal challenges. The FDA mifepristone REMS litigation (FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine) may affect medication-abortion access nationwide regardless of Rhode Island's permissive state law. The repealed abortion-facility regulation (216-RICR-20-10-6) means general healthcare-facility licensing standards now apply to abortion clinics; re-check whether the Department of Health has adopted replacement regulations.","gaps":["The exact date of the repeal of the fetal-homicide statute (former § 11-23-5) was not definitively identified; the 2025 code confirms it is repealed.","Whether Rhode Island courts would interpret health in § 23-4.13-2(d) to include mental health has not been directly adjudicated, though Doe v. Bolton provides persuasive authority.","The scope-of-practice question — whether advanced-practice clinicians may perform procedural abortion — is not directly answered by statute, and the relevant regulation was repealed without replacement.","The constitutionality of Rhode Island's shield law under the Full Faith and Credit Clause and Article IV extradition provisions has not been tested in litigation."]}}