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Lakewood Times

Lakewood Times

Lakewood Times

    Ohio’s ‘Heartbeat’ Abortion Ban

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    The ‘Heartbeat’ Abortion Ban is a bill that has previously been proposed in Ohio. Each earlier attempt, however, has been vetoed by the Governor of the time (John Kasich). The bill would ban abortions as soon as a fetal heartbeat is detected, which can occur as early as six weeks. If passed, this would be one of the strictest bans on abortion in the nation. This time when the bill was voted on by the Ohio Senate the results were 19-13 in favor of the bill. The bill now goes to the House, which is currently a Republican majority. If the bill is passed by the House, Governor Mike DeWine said that he would sign the ‘Heartbeat’ Abortion Ban into Law.

    The bill is sponsored by Ohio State Senator Kristina Roegner. She believes using the fetal heartbeat as the defining line is clearer than the current method of determining the fate of a fetus based on its growth outside the womb. And she alluded to a goal of abortion opponents of overturning the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case of Roe v. Wade in her remarks to Senate colleagues.

    While the bill includes exemptions for cases where the mother’s life is in danger, there are other potential situations not taken into consideration. The bill does not include exemptions for victims of rape or incest. The ‘Heartbeat’ Abortion Ban is also problematic because some women are not even aware they are pregnant at the time when a fetal heartbeat can be detected.

    Lakewood High School student, Emily Perry, has strong opinions about this bill. She said, “I think it is completely unconstitutional and takes away our rights as women.”

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