(LEX 18) — Daniel Cameron emphasized that if he's elected to the Governor's Office, he will continue to support Kentucky's abortion bans.
But his recent action, in his current role as Kentucky's Attorney General, is what has abortion advocates currently concerned.
Cameron co-signed a letter that opposes a proposed federal privacy rule. The rule would block state officials from accessing medical information on reproductive healthcare services people obtain out-of-state. That means Kentucky officials wouldn't be able to access out-of-state abortion records.
In the letter, Cameron and 18 Republican attorneys general argue that the proposed rule would interfere with the ability of state officials to "obtain evidence of potential violations of state laws."
The attorneys general also accused the Biden Administration of promoting a “false narrative that states are seeking to treat pregnant women as criminals or punish medical personnel who provide life-saving care."
"Based on this lie, the administration has sought to wrest control over abortion back from the people in defiance of the Constitution and Dobbs," the letter reads.
And the letter does have abortion advocates worried.
“This letter is the epitome of hypocrisy and the need for control," said Tamarra Wieder, the Kentucky State Director for Planned Parenthood Alliance Advocates. "Why would Cameron, Rokita or any Attorney General be seeking private medical information related to abortion patients if not to prosecute them for obtaining care?”
“Anti-abortion lawmakers like Cameron and Rokita seem willing to go to any extent to scare patients out of obtaining abortions," Wieder added. "How far are they willing to go? The South Carolina GOP asked for the death penalty, is this what Cameron also wants for the Commonwealth? The bottom line is that these AGs will stop at nothing, even the unthinkable, in order to terrorize patients from accessing abortion care."
During a campaign stop in La Grange on Thursday, LEX 18 asked Cameron if he, as governor, would support or oppose prosecuting people for out-of-state abortions. He said: "We're not prosecuting pregnant mothers."
"Kentucky is not going to be a state of which we prosecute women. That's certainly not the aim of what our legislature has done. That is not at all what Kentucky is about," said Cameron. "We are establishing a culture of life here in Kentucky. We want pregnant mothers to understand that this is going to be a Commonwealth in which we support a culture of life."
Cameron said the letter was about protecting states' abilities to enforce their own abortion laws.
"Obviously, HIPAA laws protect privacy of medical records. Of this [letter], in particular, was about making sure that states rather than the federal government - because of the overturning of Roe v Wade - make the decisions about the [state] government, which is what the Biden administration is trying to do. So, we are going to fight against the Biden Administration in every turn when they overstep the bounds in terms of our laws here in the Commonwealth in Kentucky," said Cameron. "But no, we are not prosecuting any women - any pregnant mothers - here in the Commonwealth of Kentucky."
"We're about establishing a culture of life here in Kentucky. We're not prosecuting pregnant mothers. Again, what our legislature has done, what everybody in the pro-life space is about is making sure that our unborn have every opportunity to reach their God-given potential. We are not prosecuting - you obviously know, I've been on the record as saying we are not prosecuting pregnant mothers here in the Commonwealth," Cameron added.
