Less than a year after Florida implemented a 15-week abortion ban, Florida Republicans are lowering the legal limit to 6 weeks
Florida’s House has sent a bill instituting a six-week abortion ban to Governor Ron DeSantis’ desk– and he’s already indicated he’ll likely give it his signature. The Republican supermajority passed the proposed bill in a 70-40 vote on Thursday, and summarily rejected dozens of amendments from Democrats seeking to soften the stringent restrictions within the legislation.
The ban would make exceptions for rape or incest but would require women and girls to provide police records or medical evidence to attest to their claims.
This is the second restrictive anti-abortion law approved by the Florida legislature in the aftermath of the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v Wade. In April of last year, DeSantis signed a 15-week abortion ban into law. The legislation was challenged on grounds of its constitutionality, and the state Supreme Court has accepted a request to hear challenges against the law. The new bill’s implementation will likely be contingent on the court’s ruling.
Access to abortion is currently under threat on a national level. Last week, a Texas judge ruled that the abortion medication mifepristone should be banned nationwide. The decision would essentially render the most common method of abortion inaccessible nationwide, even in states where abortion is legal. The ruling has already been challenged by the Department of Justice, and a competing ruling prevented the FDA from immediately pulling the drug from the market.
