New Mississippi laws cover a range of issues

JACKSON — In addition to the new law more clearly defining that people have the right to openly carry guns in many public places, several other new laws go into effect in Mississippi Monday.

One of the laws seeks to change education by allowing formation of charter schools, which receive public money but are free from many government regulations. Republican Gov. Phil Bryant says charter schools could offer innovative ways to improve education in a state that perpetually ranks low in math and reading scores.

The state also is establishing grants to help schools hire security officers, and it is requiring each school district to adopt a policy about allowing a “limited public forum” at assemblies and other events to let students express their religious beliefs.

Another new law says a physician must be present when a woman takes abortion-inducing drugs, and the woman must have a follow-up physical examination two weeks later. Until now, the practice has been for a woman to take the first pill at the clinic then to take the two subsequent rounds of pills on two subsequent days, usually at home.

At the state’s only abortion clinic, Jackson Women’s Health Organization, women who receive this type of abortion have been advised to have a checkup three weeks later, either at the clinic or another medical facility, to ensure that they’re no longer pregnant. Physicians there say some women can still get a false positive test two weeks later because of lingering hormones. Clinic owner Diane Derzis said the law will be burdensome for patients who have to return for extra office visits and for physicians who will have more appointments.

Another new law says the Department of Human Services can hire private vendors to collect overdue child support. Critics say the last time Mississippi tried this on a broad scale, in the 1990s, it was a disaster.