Atlanta, Ga., Mar 11, 2019 / 23:09 pm
Lawmakers in Georgia and Tennessee have advanced bills that would ban most abortions when a fetal heartbeat is detected, usually around six weeks of pregnancy. Should they become law, both are expected to face legal challenges, as courts have historically ruled similar laws unconstitutional.
House Bill 481 passed the Georgia House by a vote of 93-73 last Thursday and now moves to the Senate, according to WSB-TV Atlanta. Governor Brian Kemp released a video message supporting the bill shortly after its passage.
The bill includes exceptions for pregnancies that are the result of rape or incest- which would be demonstrated by a police report filed by the woman- as well as when a pregnancy is deemed to threaten the life of the mother or to be "medically futile."
The Georgia Health and Human Services Committee tabled a second piece of legislation that would have created a "trigger law" to ban abortion if Roe v. Wade, the 1973 ruling that found a Constitutional right to abortion, is overturned by the Supreme Court.