When Donald Trump was elected as the next President of the United States last month, one of the biggest worries (there are so many) was what it would mean for abortion laws under a conservative Republican government.
The President-elect has made no secret of his “pro-life” stance. And on Tuesday, Ohio lawmakers passed a controversial time-based abortion law stating the new presidency as .
Dubbed the “Heartbeat Bill”, the law bans abortions in the state from the moment a heartbeat of a foetus can be detected – which can be as early as six weeks in many women.
The bill states that abortions would be prohibited in the case of rape or incest but does allow for some rare cases due to medical and health reasons. Foetal health anomalies will also not be considered.
As most women will know, you often don’t even find out you are pregnant until the fifth or sixth week, leaving the window for making this life-changing decision extremely small – or in some cases non-existent.
The bill is now in the hands of Republican Governor John Kasich, who CNN reports, has 10 days to decide whether to veto the legislation.
The controversial bill has been considered before but has never previously made it past the Senate, however Ohio Senate President Keith Faber says the recent election has empowered Republicans to throw their support behind it, reports The Washington Post.
“One, a new President, new Supreme Court justice appointees change the dynamic, and that there was a consensus in our caucus to move forward,” Faber told reporters after the vote.
“I think it has a better chance than it did before,” he added.
If the bill passes it could be in place early next year however the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio has already declared that it will mount a legal challenge if this is the case.
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