The Florida House of Representatives passed a bill Thursday banning most abortions after six weeks, when many ladies do not know they’re pregnant.
The bill passed by a vote of 70 to 40, largely along party lines. The measure now goes to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who is predicted to sign it.
He repeated his support for tightening abortion restrictions just last month, saying: “We welcome pro-life laws.”
The law would only go into effect if the state’s existing 15-week ban were upheld ongoing legal challenge that’s, before the state Supreme Court. Republican governor signed in February this prohibition, which makes no exceptions for rape, incest or human trafficking.
The laws would make abortion after the six-week deadline a third-degree felony punishable by as much as five years in prison.
But it surely includes exceptions for cases of rape and incest as much as 15 weeks of pregnancy, as determined by the doctor. In these cases, the lady would have to offer documentation akin to medical records, a restraining order or a police report back to prove that she is a victim.
DeSantis last month called those laws and rape and incest laws “reasonable.”
The act also permits abortion in serious medical emergencies. But only on the condition that two doctors certify in writing that the abortion is vital to avoid wasting the lifetime of the pregnant woman or to avoid a serious risk of serious and “irreversible physical impairment” of bodily functions. A single doctor could make this call if the opposite isn’t available for consultation.
Abortion can also be allowed as much as the third trimester in cases where the fetus has a fatal defect, but two doctors must certify it in writing.
A six-week limit would bring the state closer to abortion restrictions in other GOP-controlled states. It could effectively end Florida’s repute as a shelter for people from other southern states who want an abortion.
The measure could also give DeSantis a possible political boost amongst Republican voters ahead of a possible 2024 presidential campaign.
Prior to the vote, Republican lawmakers reiterated long-conservative views on abortion.
MP Jenna Individuals-Mulicka said the bill would save lives, pointing to over 82,000 abortions recorded in Florida last 12 months.
“Today we stand for all times, we stand with the moms and families of Florida,” said Individuals-Mulicka. “We are able to change the culture of abortion to a culture of life.”
State Democrats have criticized the bill because it was introduced early last month. The Florida Senate’s vote to pass the bill last week sparked demonstrations on the State Capitol in Tallahassee, resulting in arrest two democratic MPs.
Other Democratic officials slammed the bill to the House floor before the vote.
“Abortion is healthcare,” said Congressman Kelly Skidmore thrice in a row. “This bill denies it to hundreds of thousands of Florida residents. This can be a dangerous law. We are going to never conform to that.”
“What you are doing is telling every Florida resident that they must live the way in which you would like them to live, not the way in which they wish to live,” she continued. “Stay out of my business.”
Representative Robin Bartleman similarly said, “The proper to bodily autonomy is an inborn right.”
“My body is mine. We don’t need unclear laws and muddy waters,” Bartleman said.
A recent study suggests that the six-week abortion ban isn’t popular with Florida residents. About 75% of greater than 1,400 people said they opposed the ban to some extent or strongly, in response to the University of North Florida vote released in March.
The bill comes as a chaotic legal battle over the mifepristone abortion pill involves a head. The U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals overnight froze a part of a Texas judge’s ruling that will have suspended the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of Mifepristone.
The Biden administration will ask the Supreme Court to intervene, Attorney General Merrick Garland announced Thursday.
The Florida measure also marks a broader shift within the legal battle over abortion rights in the US after the Supreme Court last June overturned the 50-year Roe v. Wade verdict. After this decision, abortion rights were largely left to individual states.
Some states have rushed to ban the procedure altogether, while others have regularly introduced recent restrictions. Most abortions are now banned in over a dozen states, including Idaho, Texas, Tennessee, Wisconsin, West Virginia and Oklahoma.