Gov. Hobbs calls for Arizona to stop collecting abortion data, citing patient privacy [Video]

PHOENIX (AZFamily/AP) — Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs is calling for legislators to repeal the state law that requires an annual abortion report, saying that it infringes on patients’ privacy, which echoes other Democratic officials’ push to reduce or eliminate such requirements.

“The government has no place in surveilling Arizonans’ medical decision-making or tracking their health history,” Hobbs, a Democrat in a state where Republicans control the Legislature, said in a statement Wednesday as the state released its report covering 2023.

“Starting a family is a sensitive and personal experience for a woman and her loved ones; there should be no room for government surveillance and publication of that decision,” the governor said.

Hobbs is not the only one concerned about the collection of abortion data, especially as Donald Trump prepares to take over as president again, when he could implement policies that are hostile, or at least less favorable, to abortion rights.

“It’s really worth thinking carefully about the risk and the benefit of collecting data in …