Bill Misrepresenting the Science of Fetal Development Introduced in Alabama
Bill Misrepresenting the Science of Fetal Development Introduced in Alabama
On May 15, 2019, the Alabama legislature passed House Bill 314 which makes abortion and attempted abortion a criminal offense (except in limited situations where the health of the mother is at risk). Section 2 of the bill, titled “Legislative Findings,” states that “[r]ecent medical advances prove a baby’s heart starts to beat at around six weeks.” However, according to medical professionals, that is not the case. At six weeks of pregnancy, ultrasounds can detect a “rhythm” which reflects the electrical activity of the embryo, but is not a “heartbeat” as a six-week-old embryo does not yet have developed organs, such as a heart.
| Update: On May 24, 2019, Dr. Yashica Robinson, the Alabama Women’s Center, Planned Parenthood Southeast Inc., Reproductive Health Services of Alabama, and West Alabama Women’s Center filed a lawsuit challenging the bill on constitutional grounds. |
Every individual who sponsored this, every individual who voted for it, every individual who thinks this is a good law is a very sick individual who in their actions and in their heart commits a grievous sin against God and mankind.