Medics should not report suspected illegal abortions to the police, leading women’s doctors are expected to say.
The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) will remind healthcare workers of their duty to maintain patient confidentiality in new guidance, which is yet to be published.
Doctors are required to ask for consent before sharing any confidential medical information.
But medics can share information if it is in the public interest and “if failure to do so may expose others to a risk of death or serious harm”, according to the medical regulator.
There are devastating consequences that come from a culture of increased reporting, police investigations and prosecutions that simply would not happen with any other medical procedure
In new guidance, RCOG will reportedly tell medics it is “never” in the public interest to share information about suspected illegal abortions.
RCOG has been approached for comment but said the guidance will not be published until later in the week.
It comes after high-profile prosecutions, including that of Bethany Cox who was accused of using poison for an at-home abortion in 2020.
Ms Cox, from Eaglescliffe, Stockton-on-Tees, was brought before the courts, only for prosecutors to drop the charges against her earlier this year.
Meanwhile, Carla Foster was jailed last year for illegally obtaining abortion tablets to end her pregnancy, but her sentence was reduced on appeal.
BPAS (the British Pregnancy Advisory Service) said a “culture of increased reporting” can have “devastating consequences”.
A spokesman said: “It is too often the case that women who are ending up before the courts are ones who have had the police called on them by medical professionals they trusted.
“There are devastating consequences that come from a culture of increased reporting, police investigations and prosecutions that simply would not happen with any other medical procedure.
“The question must be asked – who benefits from subjecting women to lengthy and traumatic police investigations and threat of prosecution and prison time? Not police, not taxpayers, not politicians, and certainly not our women.”
We carefully consider the personal circumstances of those who end their pregnancy outside the legal parameters and address these as sensitively as possible
A Crown Prosecution Service spokesman said: “These exceptionally rare cases are complex and traumatic.
“We carefully consider the personal circumstances of those who end their pregnancy outside the legal parameters and address these as sensitively as possible.
“Our prosecutors have a duty to ensure that laws set by Parliament are properly considered and applied when making difficult charging decisions.”
A Government spokesman said: “It is important that all women have access to safe and legal abortions on the NHS, which now includes taking abortion pills at home.
“We understand this is an extremely sensitive issue and we recognise the strongly held views on all sides of the discussion.
“That is why, by longstanding convention, any change to the law in this area would be a matter of conscience for individual MPs rather than the Government.”