Employees at the University of Idaho were warned via email not to advertise or give abortions to students in light of Idaho’s restrictive abortion laws.
The statute bars university personnel from advocating, offering, or counseling in favor of abortion, as well as contracting with abortion providers, the university’s general counsel cautioned in a long email obtained by the Idaho Capital Sun.
According to the report, the 2021 state law expressly targets institutions that receive state funds, such as public universities, and offenders may face misdemeanor or criminal charges in addition to being dismissed and excluded from state employment.
According to the Capital Sun, university spokesman Jodi Walker stated, “This is a hard law for many and has genuine implications for individuals in that it mandates criminal prosecution.”
According to the Capital Sun, Walker stated that the university supports its students, faculty, and “academic freedom,” but must “operate within the regulations established by our state.”
“Employees who engage in pro-abortion behavior in the course of their employment may be considered to be supporting abortion. While it is permissible to address abortion as a policy issue in the classroom, we strongly advise teachers to remain impartial or risk breaching the law “Walker stated, according to Capital Sun.
According to The Washington Post, the state’s trigger ban on abortions, which went into force in August, prohibits the operation after conception, except in circumstances where a pregnant woman’s life is in jeopardy or where rape or incest have been reported to authorities.
The university’s memorandum, which stated that the “language of this Act is not a paragon of clarity,” indicated that university workers are prohibited from providing contraception to students.
“Since violation is considered a criminal, we recommend the university take a conservative stance and refrain from providing normal birth control,” the memo stated, reported the Capital Sun.