Mississippi lawmakers passed a law Tuesday banning abortion as soon as a foetal heart rate can be detected in the embryo, from around 6 weeks of pregnancy (see Two pro-life legislative initiatives in the US). The so-called “Heartbeat Bill”, makes exceptions “for medical complications”. The text of the bill has to be approved by Governor Phil Bryant, who tweeted that he was “eager to sign it”.
The state of Kentucky had passed the previous week a similar law, but it was “immediately blocked by a judge, as was already the case in Iowa” (see Two new U.S. states pass legislation banning abortion as soon as a foetal heartbeat is detected). The states of Tennessee and Georgia are also considering similar legislation.
AFP (20/03/2019)