Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Furor Erupts In Alabama Legislature Over Rape, Incest Amendments Delaying Vote On Law That Would Ban Abortions
The Washington Post: Alabama Abortion Law: Alabama Senate Tables Controversial Bill To Criminalize Abortions
After a shouting match broke out, the Alabama Senate on Thursday abruptly delayed a vote on a bill that would outlaw most abortions in the state and make performing the procedure a felony punishable by up to 99 years imprisonment. The tumult and yelling on the Senate floor began when some Republicans attempted to remove amendments that would have allowed women to get abortions in cases of rape or incest. (Wax-Thibodeaux and Cha, 5/9)
The Wall Street Journal: Anger Erupts In Alabama Senate Over Abortion Bill
In the Alabama Senate on Thursday, discord flared over consideration of an amendment that would create exceptions to the bill in the case of rape or incest. The House version passed without such a provision, but one was added in a Senate committee. Lt. Gov. Will Ainsworth, who presides over the Senate, removed the amendment on rape and incest in a voice vote, setting off screaming denunciations by Democratic Sen. Bobby Singleton. Shortly after, senators agreed to adjourn until Tuesday, when the bill and the amendment could be taken up again.“This is just a red meat kind of bill for the Republican party nationally,” Mr. Singleton said earlier during debate. “Think about what we’re about to do here in this state, and how we’re going to deal with the ability for a woman to make her choice.” (Campo-Flores, 5/9)
The New York Times: What Do New State Abortion Laws Really Mean For Women?
This week, the governor of Georgia signed one of the most restrictive abortion laws in the country. It effectively outlaws the procedure after six weeks of pregnancy. Republican governors in three other states — Mississippi, Kentucky and Ohio — have signed similar laws this year, marking a new and more severe tactic by the anti-abortion movement. The current constitutional standard under the Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision is that abortion is legal up until the point when the fetus could survive outside a woman’s womb — usually about 24 weeks into the pregnancy. (Belluck, 5/9)
The Washington Post: Which States Are Blocking Abortion — And Which Are Enacting Protections?
Many states have created new laws this year to limit abortion or even try to ban it altogether in the hope that the Supreme Court with President Trump’s two appointees will be more likely to approve them. (Keating, Tierney and Meko, 5/9)
And in Texas —
Texas Tribune: Why Texas Abortion Opponents Aren’t Leading The Charge To Overturn Roe V. Wade
Emboldened by a newly conservative U.S. Supreme Court, abortion opponents across the country are pushing some of the most restrictive anti-abortion legislation in recent years — like “heartbeat bills” that would ban the procedure after six weeks of pregnancy. With new legislative restrictions, they hope to incite a legal battle to overturn, or at least gut, the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling that was spurred by a Texas abortion law. But three of Texas' biggest anti-abortion groups want to avoid legislation that takes direct aim at Roe v. Wade, fearing such an approach could backfire and justices could uphold women's rights to the procedure. Instead, they want to take a more incremental approach with bills that would erode abortion protections more slowly. (Sundaram, 5/10)
Texas Tribune: Texas Senate Removes Exception That Allows Abortion After 20 Weeks If Pregnancy Is Unviable
The Texas Senate passed a bill on Tuesday that would ban abortions on the basis of the sex, race or disability of a fetus, and criminalize doctors who perform what opponents call “discriminatory abortions. ”Current state law prohibits abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, but there are certain exceptions, such as when the pregnancy is not viable or the fetus has "severe and irreversible" abnormalities. (Sundaram, 5/7)
