New OK abortion law

[Balta1701]

H. Christ. Anyone want to defend this one for me?

 

States I'm not moving to as of this week: Arizona, Oklahoma.

The Oklahoma Legislature voted overwhelmingly Tuesday to override vetoes of two highly restrictive abortion measures, one making it a law that women undergo an ultrasound and listen to a detailed description of the fetus before having an abortion.

 

Though other states have passed similar measures forcing women to have ultrasounds, Oklahoma’s law goes further, requiring a doctor or technician to set up the monitor where the woman can see it and describe the heart, limbs and organs of the fetus. No exceptions are made for rape and incest victims.

 

The second measure passed into law Tuesday protects doctors from malpractice suits if they decide not to inform the parents of a unborn baby that the fetus has birth defects. The intent of the bill is to prevent parents from later suing doctors who withhold information to try to influence them against having an abortion.

 

Gov. Brad Henry, a Democrat, vetoed both bills last week. The ultrasound law, he said, was flawed because it did not exempt rape and incest victims and was an unconstitutional intrusion into a woman’s privacy. He painted the other measure as immoral.

 

“It is unconscionable to grant a physician legal protection to mislead or misinform pregnant women in an effort to impose his or her personal beliefs on a patient,” Mr. Henry said.

 

The Republican majorities in both houses, however, saw things differently. On Monday, the House voted overwhelmingly to override the vetoes, and the Senate followed suit at 10:42 a.m. Tuesday, making the two measures law.

Emphasis mine.

[Texsox]

H. Christ. Anyone want to defend this one for me?

 

States I'm not moving to as of this week: Arizona, Oklahoma.

Emphasis mine.

 

 

I do not have a defense. In a world where Chinese couples abort females to keep their name going, aborting a baby with birth defects seems reasonable.

[CrimsonWeltall]

H. Christ. Anyone want to defend this one for me?

 

States I'm not moving to as of this week: Arizona, Oklahoma.

Emphasis mine.

 

It also basically requires that women early in their pregnancy get an invasive vaginal ultrasound rather than the normal abdominal one because it could get a clearer picture.

 

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/04/19...probe-abortion/

[Soxy]

Not totally related, but I think it's a similar situation to one in Mexico where a 10 year old was 'raped' (using the Fox News way of talking about rape) by her step father. The girl can't get an abortion because it is too late in her term. The child also says she wants to keep the baby to be a mommy.

 

Saddest story of the year? Probably.

[G&T]

Only abut 20 states in the country permit wrongful birth causes of action according to an American Jurisprudence survey. So you might want to avoid a lot of states. Of course, for the most part it isn't by statute (except Idaho), but courts were afraid to recognize it 20 years ago without a law and legislatures haven't done anything.

[Balta1701]

Only abut 20 states in the country permit wrongful birth causes of action according to an American Jurisprudence survey. So you might want to avoid a lot of states. Of course, for the most part it isn't by statute (except Idaho), but courts were afraid to recognize it 20 years ago without a law and legislatures haven't done anything.

The thing that bothers me is that a doctor could get test results showing something bad and then decide on his or her own not to tell me about it.

[G&T]

The thing that bothers me is that a doctor could get test results showing something bad and then decide on his or her own not to tell me about it.

 

Yeah, I find it wrong ethically for a doctor to withhold information. Generally, these laws are meant to protect doctors who act negligently from having to pay exorbitant malpractice claims because the child is born deformed and they have to cover the excessive child care expenses. I don't think intentionally withholding information would be covered in any other state (except maybe that Idaho law), but since proving intent is so difficult it might not matter.

[HuskyCaucasian]

Anti-abortion amendment narrowly passes Florida Senate

TALLAHASSEE -- With two days left in the legislative session, the Republican-held Florida Senate voted 22-17 to pass a controversial amendment requiring women who are seeking abortions to pay for ultrasound exams, using legislative maneuvering to deliver an election-year victory to religious conservatives.

 

The ultrasound requirement would apply to first-trimester abortions, when more than 90 percent of abortions in Florida occur. Ultrasounds are already required in late-term abortions that occur after the first trimester.

 

Women could refuse to view the ultrasound image after filling out a form. Exceptions to the ultrasound requirement are provided to victims of rape, incest and domestic violence -- but they would have to provide proof.

 

Ultrasound prices can vary widely, from $200 to $1,000, according to medical websites.

 

The ultrasound mandate never got a vote – or even a hearing – in a single committee in either the House or Senate in the 2010 legislative session, which ends Friday. The amendment was tacked on to an otherwise innocuous bill dealing with drug-free workplaces by Sen. Andy Gardiner, R-Orlando.

 

The bill (SB1143) that now contains the ultrasound mandate is poised for a full vote in the Senate, which could come Thursday. After that, if approved, the bill moves to the House, which is deeply conservative and has favored abortion restrictions for years. Gov. Charlie Crist could veto it or sign it into law.

 

"It's actually, to me, the ultimate insult to women," said Sen. Nan Rich, D-Weston. "It's saying women can't make up their own minds, can't use their own judgment, as to what they want to do with their bodies. The Legislature is making a medical decision for women."

 

Supporters noted the decision to have an abortion is very serious and said the ultrasound mandate would simply provide women with more information.

 

"What we're talking about is not an appendectomy, we're not talking about cancer treatment," said Sen. Steve Oelrich, R-Gainesville. "What we're talking about is ending a human life."

[FlaSoxxJim]

On the OK anti-abortion law: unbelievable and completely unethical.

 

On the pending FL anti-abortion law: brilliant stealth move on the part of arch-conservative legislators to make seeking abortions cost-prohibitive for poor mothers who can't afford an ultrasound. Pathetic.

[Balta1701]

On the OK anti-abortion law: unbelievable and completely unethical.

 

On the pending FL anti-abortion law: brilliant stealth move on the part of arch-conservative legislators to make seeking abortions cost-prohibitive for poor mothers who can't afford an ultrasound. Pathetic.

How dare that Obama try to put a bureaucrat between me an my doctor! This is an outrage!

[NorthSideSox72]

Anti-abortion amendment narrowly passes Florida Senate

I think its hilarious that the same people who feel its unconstitutional to require buying medical insurance (which I might actually agree with), somehow feel its OK to require an expensive medical procedure to satisfy a religious group. So they have all sorts of problems with requiring everyone to pay what amounts to a new tax, but they have no problem requiring medical spending AND foisting their religious views on others. Brilliant.