Florida House passes six-week abortion ban backed by DeSantis

The Florida House of Representatives on Thursday passed laws that might ban 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 Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is anticipated to sign it into law.

He reiterated his support for tighter abortion restrictions just last month, saying, “We welcome pro-life laws.” 

The bill would only take effect if the state’s existing 15-week ban is upheld in an ongoing legal challenge that’s before the state Supreme Court. The Republican governor last February signed that ban, which has no exceptions for rape, incest or human trafficking.

The laws would make performing an abortion after the six-week limit a third-degree felony punishable by as much as five years in prison. 

Nevertheless it includes exceptions for cases of rape and incest as much as the fifteenth week of pregnancy as determined by a physician. In those cases, a girl would have to supply documentation comparable to a medical record, a restraining order or a police report back to prove she is a victim.

DeSantis last month called those and rape and incest provisions “sensible.” 

The bill also allows abortion in severe medical emergencies. But only on the condition that two physicians certify in writing that an abortion is mandatory to save lots of a pregnant woman’s life or avoid a serious risk of considerable and “irreversible physical impairment” to a bodily function. A single physician could make that decision if a second is not available for consultation.

Abortion can be allowed as much as the third trimester in cases where a fetus has a fatal abnormality, but two physicians must certify that in writing.

A six-week limit would more closely align the state with the abortion restrictions of other GOP-controlled states. It could effectively end Florida’s fame as a refuge for people from other Southern states who’re looking for an abortion. 

The measure could also give DeSantis a possible political boost amongst Republican voters ahead of a possible 2024 presidential run.  

Ahead of the vote, Republican lawmakers echoed long-standing conservative views on abortion. 

Rep. Jenna Individuals-Mulicka said the bill would save lives, pointing to the greater than 82,000 abortions recorded in Florida last 12 months. 

“Today we stand for all times, we stand with moms, and we stand with Florida families,” said Individuals-Mulicka. “We are able to change the culture of abortion to a culture of life.”

State Democrats have lambasted the bill because it was introduced early last month. The Florida Senate’s vote to pass the laws last week prompted demonstrations on the state Capitol in Tallahassee, which resulted within the arrest of two Democratic state lawmakers. 

Other Democratic officials slammed the bill on the House floor ahead of the vote. 

“Abortion is health care,” Rep. Kelly Skidmore said three consecutive times. “This bill denies it to hundreds of thousands of Floridians. This can be a dangerous bill. We’re never going to agree on that.” 

“What you’re doing is you’re telling every Floridian that they should live the way in which you would like them to live, not the way in which that they need to live,” she continued. “Stay out of my business.” 

Rep. Robin Bartleman similarly said, “The fitting to bodily autonomy is an innate right.”

“My body is mine. We don’t want unclear laws and muddy waters,” Bartleman said.

A recent survey suggests the six-week abortion ban is not popular amongst Florida residents. Roughly 75% of greater than 1,400 people said they either somewhat or strongly opposed the ban, in response to a University of North Florida poll released in March.

The bill comes as a messy legal battle over the abortion pill mifepristone heats up. The U.S. fifth Circuit Court of Appeals overnight froze a part of a Texas judge’s order that might 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 represents a broader shift within the legal fight over abortion rights within the U.S. after the Supreme Court in June last 12 months overturned the 50-year-old Roe v. Wade ruling. After that call, abortion rights were largely left as much as individual states. 

Some states rushed to ban the procedure completely, while others steadily rolled out latest restrictions. Most abortions are now banned in greater than a dozen states, including Idaho, Texas, Tennessee, Wisconsin, West Virginia and Oklahoma.