CBS2 reports the Idaho Senate State Affairs Committee voted Tuesday morning to send an amended version of HB 366 — the “fetal heartbeat” abortion ban bill — to the full Senate after correction of a “drafting error”.
The bill aims to ban abortions as soon as a fetal heartbeat can be detected.
Through the use of an invasive trans-vaginal ultrasound, a fetal heartbeat can now be detected at as early as six weeks — before many women know they are pregnant.
The bill contains exceptions for women whose lives are at risk because of a medical emergency, or women who have become pregnant by rape or incest, but only if they report the crime to law enforcement and give a copy of the report to the health care provider performing the abortion. That requirement has been much criticized by opponents of the bill saying it could take several months to get a copy of the police report.
The bill, which passed the House 53 to 16, also contains a “trigger provision” that means it wouldn’t go into effect unless a federal appellate court somewhere in the country upholds similar legislation from another state. Similar bills have been passed in several other states, and some are already being litigated. Last month, a federal court temporarily blocked a fetal heartbeat bill in South Carolina.
Originally written and posted by Idahonews.com
