Florida bans abortion after six weeks of pregnancy

The governor of Florida, Ron DeSantissigned a law this Thursday to reduce the term for abortion in the state from 15 to six weeks, hours after the White House described this measure as “extreme and dangerous”.

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“We are proud to support life and family in the state of Florida”DeSantis, a rising star on the American right and a possible 2024 Republican presidential candidate, said in a statement issued late at night.

The governor did not take long to sign a text approved hours before by the Low camera with 70 votes in favor and 40 against, a week after advancing in the Senate.

It is the second time in a year that the two chambers of Florida, with a Republican majority, vote on a bill to cut the legal term for abortion. In April 2022, DeSantis signed a law that reduced it from 24 weeks to 15, with no exceptions for rape or incest.

The White House ensured that the reduction of the term to six weeks “it goes against fundamental freedoms and is not in line with the opinions of the vast majority” of Americans, according to a statement from his press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre.

“This ban would prevent four million women from Florida of reproductive age to access abortion services after six weeks, even before many women know they are pregnant”he added.

The new law establishes that within said period women will not be able to get abortions in Florida unless the fetus is not viable, the pregnancy puts in jeopardy danger to the mother, or that is the result of rape or incest and does not exceed 15 weeks.

The text will not enter into force while the Florida Supreme not rule on an appeal filed by various associations against the 15 week limitunder the argument that this law violates a state privacy clause.

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“A risk” for women

The defenders of the new term ensure that it is necessary to protect the lives of beings innocent.

The Democratic opposition and pro-abortion activists say, for their part, that the state should not meddle in a personal decision and warn about the negative consequences for a lot of women.

“This bill prohibits abortion legally, but it will not prohibit it in reality”declared the Democratic congresswoman Lindsay Cross during the discussion at the Low camera. “Abortions will be done in private, without medical supervision and with an increasing risk to the women’s health, their physical and mental well-being”.

According to an NGO survey Public Religion Research Institute64% of Floridians believe that abortion should be allowed in all or most cases.

Despite the 15-week limit, Florida remains one of the most permissive places to get an abortion in southeastern USAwhich has led many pregnant women to travel there from neighboring states to terminate your pregnancy in the last few months.

The law signed this Thursday could put an end to this situation and represents a new victory for anti-abortion activists, hours after the restriction in the United States of access to mifepristone, a drug used to terminate a pregnancy, as a result of a court decision.

Source: Elcomercio

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I am Jack Morton and I work in 24 News Recorder. I mostly cover world news and I have also authored 24 news recorder. I find this work highly interesting and it allows me to keep up with current events happening around the world.