Iowa’s Republican-led legislature passed a bill banning most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy.
After a long special session ending late last night, this divisive move (that’s likely to face many legal challenges once signed into law) will add the state to a growing number of right-leaning states to severely curtail reproductive rights after the Supreme Court voted to overturn the constitutional right to abortion last year.
The special session was called by Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds (above left) to,
address the issue of abortion expeditiously.”
Iowa’s Supreme Court reached a deadlock in June and declined to reinstate a similar law she signed in 2018.
The measure passed just after 11 PM, mostly along party lines, outlaws most abortions after cardiac activity can be detected, which usually happens around six weeks of pregnancy. This is well before many people are even aware they are pregnant and weeks before an actual heart will develop or the embryo is even considered a fetus.
The law had limited exceptions for rape and incest, provided these are reported to law enforcement or health providers within a set time limit, as well as miscarriage, medical emergencies that endanger the life of the pregnant person and fetal abnormalities that are
incompatible with life.”
However the law does NOT make exceptions considering the age of the pregnant person or their mental health.
Democrats unsuccessfully pushed for the bill to make the bill less restrictive, including proposing amendments to grant exemptions to children 12 years and under.
Iowa’s state House passed a bill that would ban most abortions in the state as early as six weeks into pregnancy, acting quickly in the special session ordered by GOP Gov. Kim Reynolds with the sole purpose of restricting the procedure in the state. https://t.co/pfHH9EGGb0
— CNN (@CNN) July 12, 2023
BREAKING: In a special session called by Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds, the GOP majority in Iowa's state legislature has passed a 6-week abortion ban.
— EMILYs List (@emilyslist) July 12, 2023
This ban is an affront to freedom, the will of Iowa voters, and it will put the lives and livelihoods of millions at risk. pic.twitter.com/Q72AyPyjPm
(via Forbes)
