Florida Senate Passes Abortion Ban For Pregnancy Over Six Weeks

Illustration. (Unsplash/Gayatimen)

JAKARTA - The Republican-led Florida Senate passed a bill banning most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy on Monday, bringing the state one step closer to joining other US states in banning abortion.

Florida currently has a law prohibiting abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy, which is being challenged in court. Republicans in the House of Representatives and the state Senate filed a draft law at the same time last month, to limit further procedures, ranging from six weeks of gestation.

With Republicans in control of the legislature and government in Florida, the six-week ban is likely to become law. Governor Ron DeSantis, who is expected to challenge former President Donald Trump to become a Republican presidential candidate by 2024, has signaled his support.

The bill also makes exceptions for women who face life-threatening dangers during pregnancy, and exclusion of up to 15 weeks for rape victims, recess and human trafficking, as quoted by Politico.

The policy sponsored by Republican Senator Erin Grall, was approved in a 26-13 vote. However, this still has to go through the state House of Representatives before heading to Republican Governor Ron DeSantis.

Prior to Monday's vote, Grall cited comments made by former President Bill Clinton, a Democrat who said abortion should be safe, legal, and rare.

"We are still far from safe, legal, and rare, we have normalized and sterilized life as health care," said Grall.

"We've heard that women will continue to have abortions, but it's like saying that people will continue to kill people."

The House of Representatives is expected to discuss this issue next week. Republicans hold supermajority in Legislative Body, and the bill is expected to have no difficulties being approved by DeSantis, who also supports it.

It is known that a six-week ban will limit access to abortion across the southern part of the US, where most other states have banned the procedure in the early stages of pregnancy.

Patients have traveled to Florida from all parts of the southeast to end their pregnancy, since the US Supreme Court canceled Roe v. Wade last year, which canceled federal abortion rights.

Data from the Florida Health Care Administration showed that the number of abortion patients from outside the state rose 38 percent in 2022 compared to 2021.