Missouri passes legislation banning late-term abortions for women facing health risk

State legislators in Missouri passed a bill yesterday that further restricts cases in which women can receive late-term abortions. Missouri’s restriction is similar to the language in Florida’s state ban on public funding for abortion. Across the country, state legislatures have passed similar measures in efforts to restrict abortion access.

According to the Associated Press, Missouri’s legislation– which will now be sent to the governor to sign– “would remove a general exception for a woman’s health from an existing law against aborting viable fetuses.” If the governor signs the bill into law, a late-term abortion will only be allowed “when a woman’s life is endangered” or if the pregnancy poses a “serious risk of a permanent physical impairment.”

This distinction between serious health risk and one that is “life-threatening” or a “serious risk of a permanent physical impairment” was debated during Florida’s recently-ended legislative session.

Some Florida legislators tried to add language to a ban on public funding for abortions that would allow an exception for women who face a “serious health risk.” Such attempts failed more than once. State Sen. Stephen Wise, R-Nassau, said during a senate committee debate that such language was “too broad” and could possibly justify exceptions beyond those stipulated in the Hyde Amendment. The Hyde Amendment provides exceptions for cases of rape, incest, or a threat to the mother’s health.

According to the Guttmacher Institute, exceptions provided in late-term abortion bans are varied throughout the country.

Florida, for example, provides exceptions to the state’s late-term abortion ban for women who face a threat to their lives and health risks – an exception not consistent throughout the country.

From the Guttmacher report:

• “32 states permit abortions to preserve the life or health of the woman.”
• “3 states permit abortions to save the life or physical health of the woman.”
• “3 states permit abortions only to save the life of the woman.”

According to the Associated Press, Missouri’s law also enacts very steep penalties against any doctor violating these restrictions. Doctors found to be in violation could face fines of  “up to $50,000” and lose their medical licenses. Hospitals and surgical centers violating the restrictions could lose their state licenses.