Zipporah Jones
Staff Writer/MC301
On Thursday, March 20th, Governor Phil Bryant signed a heartbeat bill that restricts abortion as early as six weeks, when the fetal heartbeat can be heard.
This bill has been introduced in many states and places before, including Kentucky, Ohio, Tennessee, and Georgia according to The New York Times and CNN, but has never been signed to be put into action before.
Both the House and Senate in Mississippi approved and passed one of the bills that Phil Bryant signed on Thursday that places restrictions on the reproductive health of women.
Six weeks is before many women know their pregnant, and the bill offered no exceptions to those who are victims of rape or incest. The bill only offered exceptions to women whose health was at risk.
Because of such restrictions, the bill caused a huge uproar and could be seen as unconstitutional, according to Roe v. Wade—a supreme court ruling that declared abortion to be constitutional.
According to CNN, The Center for Reproductive Rights has already promised to fight in Mississippi.
According to CNN, the organization stated, “This ban is one the most restrictive abortion bans signed into law, and we will take Mississippi to court to make sure it never takes effect”.
The Center for Reproductive Rights based in New York has actually promised to sue, according to the Clarion Ledger.
Governor Bryant stated that he was protecting the lives of unborn children through this bill, according to Clarion Ledger.
“We’re going to protect that child whenever we can. We think this is showing the profound respect and desire of Mississippians to protect that child whenever we can,” Bryant said on Thursday, according to NY Times.
This restrictive measure may come at the cost of many taxpayer dollars and women who deserve reproductive rights in Mississippi. It is supposed to take effect on July the 1st, but will likely be challenged in court before then, according to Clarion Ledger.
Critics have pointed out that taxpayer money is being wasted on something that probably will be halted in court.
A previous law in Mississippi that would have banned abortions after fifteen weeks was blocked by a federal judge in November, who declared the law unconstitutional, according to NY Times.
According to the Clarion Ledger, critics also point out that Mississippi has the worst infant mortality rate in the nation, and they should focus on that rather than pushing stricter abortion laws.
Many problems may be in the type of legislation introduced in Mississippi. Legislation that focused on childcare and children’s well-being rather than stricter abortion would be a positive start towards improvement.
Mississippi is not the only state that has moved towards stricter abortion laws. Florida, Ohio, Missouri, Tennessee, and Texas are all expected to approve fetal heartbeat measures this year, according to the NY Times.
Efforts have also been made in Oklahoma seeking to add abortion to felony homicide laws, which could lead to potentially sending doctors to prison.
Mississippi only has a single abortion clinic, located in Jackson, and it is often at the forefront of controversy involving abortion rights.
One of the most restrictive abortion bans introduced and signed into law, it could mean a huge change for many women in the state of Mississippi.
The basic reproductive rights that they possess could be taken, and child mortality could even possibly increase in Mississippi.
Women who have been victims of rape or incest will not have an outlet and will have to travel out of state to have procedures done. Many women might also have abortions done illegally, putting their health in danger because no other options exist.
The heartbeat bill could be a serious danger to the health and freedom of women in Mississippi. Many organizations have already started the fight to protect women’s rights in Mississippi.
