The legislation bans abortions after six weeks of pregnancy and also allows family members to sue a doctor who performs such a procedure
Pro-choice activists have slammed the Idaho legislation for being unscientific, cruel and unconstitutional. AFP
Idaho in United States passed a bill banning abortion after six weeks of pregnancy, making it the first American state to pass a law mimicking Texas’ six-week abortion ban.
Governor Brad Little on Wednesday signed the bill, which now restricts abortions once the embryonic or foetal cardiac activity has been detected, and it allows family members of the foetus to bring legal action against the medical provider who performs the abortion.
“I stand in solidarity with all Idahoans who seek to protect the lives of preborn babies,” Little wrote in a letter to Lt Gov Janice McGeachin, who is also president of the Senate.
We take a look at what this legislation says, how it is similar to the Texas law and its impact on American society.
What is Idaho Bill 1039?
The Idaho Abortion bill, also known as Bill 1039, reads: “A person may not perform an abortion on a pregnant woman when a 43 foetal heartbeat has been detected, except in the case of a medical emergency.”
The emergency has been outlined as victims of rape and incest.
The law also allows people who would have been family members to sue a doctor who performs an abortion after cardiac activity is detected in an embryo.
The law states that the presumed father, grandparents, siblings, aunts, and uncles of an embryo can sue an abortion provider within four years of the procedure taking place, if it was believed to have happened after about six weeks of pregnancy.
Alternatively, if the victim of a rape terminates a pregnancy without filling a police report, the rapist’s immediate family can legally sue the victim for a minimum of $20,000.
The legislation also states that if a minor who became pregnant as a result of rape or incest wants to have an abortion, they or their guardian must first report it to law enforcement or child protective services and share a copy of the report with the physician performing the procedure.
Governor Brad Little, however, noted as per an Associated Press report, “While I support the pro-life policy in this legislation, I fear the novel civil enforcement mechanism will in short order be proven both unconstitutional and unwise.”
Idaho’s legislation is similar to the one passed by Texas. In Texas, the SB 8 bans abortions of a foetus post six weeks. The law empowers private citizens to sue anyone who “aids or abets” a prohibited abortion. Those who sue could be awarded at least $10,000 if they win.
It is also important to note here that while the Idaho law allows for exceptions, there are no exceptions to the Texas legislation.
Opposition to Idaho’s legislation
The law hasn’t been welcomed and abortion proponents have slammed the bill for being unscientific.
They argue that advanced technology can detect a first flutter of electric activity within cells in an embryo as early as six weeks. This flutter isn’t a beating heart; it’s cardiac activity that will eventually become a heart.
A Planned Parenthood official called the law unconstitutional and said the group was “committed to going to every length and exploring all our options to restore Idahoans’ right to abortion.”
“If the governor’s signing of this cruel, unconstitutional copycat legislation inspires anything, let it be rage and action,” Alexis McGill Johnson, president of Planned Parenthood Action Fund, said in a statement.
“We will not sit idly by as Idahoans’ right to abortion is stripped from them. We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: Planned Parenthood’s doors remain open in Idaho, and we will continue fighting for patients and our communities.”
“The vigilante aspect of this bill is absurd,” said Idaho Democratic Representative Lauren Necochea. “Its impacts are cruel, and it is blatantly unconstitutional.”
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said, “This development is devastating for women in Idaho, as it will further impede women’s access to health care, especially those on low incomes and living in rural communities.”
Impact on society
The timing of the Idaho legislation is significant; it comes a few months before the US Supreme Court is expected to take a call on the landmark Roe v Wade judgment of 1973 pertaining to abortion in the US. In December last year, the Supreme Court, which has a conservative majority, signalled that they might overturn the landmark judgment.
These abortion laws are making it more difficult for abortion rights advocates to stop them.
Also, it will give rise to illegal and unsafe abortions, which could be dangerous for women.
Jessica Arons, senior policy counsel at the American Civil Liberties Union, told NPR, “I think that with these laws going into effect, we’re going to start to see ripple effects. You’re going to see more and more patients displaced and having to travel even further to obtain care.”
With inputs from agencies
Read all the Latest News, Trending News, Cricket News, Bollywood News,
India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.