The Heartbeat Bill recently passed by the Ohio House (currently on its way to the Senate) has had a LOT of not just bad press, but actively deceitful press. Here is the link to the full text of the bill. I’m going to bust a few myths here:
Myth #1: An abortionist who violates this ban would face the death penalty.
From the actual bill:
Sec. 2919.195.
Whoever violates this division is guilty of performing or
inducing an abortion after the detection of a fetal heartbeat, a
felony of the fifth degree.
A 5th degree felony in Ohio carries a prison sentence of typically 6-12 months. No death penalty.
Myth #2: A pregnant person who violates this ban would face the death penalty.
Sec.
2919.198
A pregnant woman on whom an
abortion is performed or induced in violation of section 2919.193, 2919.194, or 2919.195 of the
Revised Code is not guilty of violating any of those sections;
is not guilty of attempting to commit, conspiring to commit, or
complicity in committing a violation of any of those sections;
and is not subject to a civil penalty based on the abortion
being performed or induced in violation of any of those
sections.
IN FACT, the woman who has an illegal abortion can sue the abortionist for the wrongful death of her child (Sec.
2919.199.)
Myth #3: There are no exceptions for the health or life of the mother.
Sec. 2919.195
Division (A) of this section does not apply to a
physician who performs a medical procedure that, in the
physician’s reasonable medical judgment, is designed or intended
to prevent the death of the pregnant woman or to prevent a
serious risk of the substantial and irreversible impairment of a
major bodily function of the pregnant woman.
Feel free to let me know if you hear any other myths about this bill.
That’s actually somewhat deleting. So what DOES the bill actually do? I have a hard time with legalese..
It bans abortions once the fetal heartbeat can be detected. Basically they have to check for a heartbeat, and if they find one they can’t do it. The medical exception is in there, which worries me because I know there are abortionists who will exploit that. But hopefully it drastically reduces abortion in Ohio.
More importantly, this bill considers preborn humans to be individual persons, worthy of protection under the law. My hope is that it makes it to the Supreme Court and is upheld, which would set powerful precedent for further abortion restrictions across the country or, hopefully, at the federal level.
AngelMihe 