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Florida To Require 24 Hour Abortion Waiting Period
June 11, 2015
In a widely expected move, Gov. Rick Scott on Wednesday signed a measure that will require a 24-hour waiting period before women can have abortions.
The bill (HB 633), sponsored by Rep. Jennifer Sullivan, R-Mount Dora, prompted passionate debate during this spring’s regular legislative session, but passed overwhelmingly in the Republican-controlled House and Senate.
“The importance of this bill is to give women an opportunity to reflect on a major decision that they are about to undertake — a major medical procedure that will have lifelong effects, not just physically but mentally as well,” said Sen. Anitere Flores, a Miami Republican who sponsored the Senate version of the bill.
The bill, which goes into effect July 1, adds to an already-existing law that requires physicians performing abortions to provide information to women to obtain their consent. Under the bill, the information must be provided in person to the women at least 24 hours before the procedures are performed.
The bill includes exceptions for victims of rape, incest, domestic violence or human trafficking — but those victims can waive the 24-hour wait only if they can produce police reports, restraining orders, medical records or other documentation.
“The idea that a woman who has been raped or violated has to now go get a police report in order to prove that, I find absurd and frankly insulting,” said Sen. Jeff Clemens, a Lake Worth Democrat who opposed the bill.
Other opponents called the bill unconstitutional. Sen. Darren Soto, D-Orlando, said during floor debate in April that because the Florida Constitution guarantees the right to privacy, the bill is vulnerable to a challenge.
“I would not be surprised to see it challenged immediately,” he said.
Sullivan, however, said she studied legislation passed by other states to help ensure the bill would withstand a constitutional challenge.
“I was very particular about how I worded it. I know Florida’s constitution is a little bit different than some others,” she said. “Even knowing that, I did try to go above and beyond in working with staff, to make sure that it would hold up in court.”
The 24-hour waiting period will join already-existing requirements for informed consent, including discussing medical risks to the woman and fetus, a description of the fetus, and help finding alternatives to ending a pregnancy.
Senate Minority Leader Arthenia Joyner, D-Tampa, said the bill is part of a long-term effort to whittle away at abortion rights.
“There are those who are not content unless they continue the effort to deny a woman the right to choose,” she said.
Critics have argued, in part, that the waiting period would particularly affect women from rural areas who might have to travel long distances to abortion clinics. The requirement means women will have to make two trips to clinics.
“Planned Parenthood provides every woman with counseling, support and information about all of her options,” Barbara A. Zdravecky, president and chief executive officer of Planned Parenthood of Southwest and Central Florida, said in a prepared statement Wednesday. “This law targets women who already have the least access to care and forces abortions later in pregnancy.”
But Flores said women can still have abortions after the waiting period if they so decide, “but we feel that it’s important to, as many other states have done, to give some time for women to reflect on this very important decision.”
by Margie Menzel, The News Service of Florida
Comments
6 Responses to “Florida To Require 24 Hour Abortion Waiting Period”
What can it hurt to wait 24 hours, the fetus is not going to flee?
Murder is as good tomorrow as it is today, give it a day.
Stupid guilt trip Bill. Veto it. A woman already knows this. An unwanted pregnancy should be ended ASAP and privately with out needing anyone else’s opinion or input. This issue was decided decades ago.
@ First Mom. There are a lot of children who need to be adopted and no one has come forward to adopt them. How about we pass a law that the male half of the deal wait 24 hours before sex. My personal feeling is the choose is between the woman and her God as she see him.
The “inconvenience” to the mother of waiting 24 hrs is noting compared to the “inconvenience” to the child being murdered.
This bill is one more way to oppress women’s rights to choose what they do if they are pregnant. I do believe that Republicans well know that and are using it to their advantage by adding more roadblocks to women’s rights to choose with this bill. It is unnecessary and cruel to put women through all of these roadblocks to get an abortion. Abortion is still legal in this country, but Republicans are making it more difficult to get one because of their OWN beliefs that are being forced on the entire populace. That is unconstitutional.
A Mom: Forcing a woman to have her rapist’s baby is meanspirited, selfish and produces more suffering for the woman who has been raped. Hasn’t she suffered enough? Surely she has PTSD and forcing her to have an unwanted child is cruel.
Every woman’s situation is different and this should be taken into consideration. These bills are nothing more than roadblocks to receiving abortions.
I am not for using abortions as a form of birth control. But I do believe that creating roadblocks is not the solution that Republicans have for trying to prevent women from having abortion because of Republicans’ own religious beliefs. You cannot force your religion on the entire populace. That is fascism.
It’s good that they’re having to wait, I also believe they should have an ultrasound & have to hear the heartbeat, so what if they have to travel, it’d give them longer to think, I’m rural & I’ve NEVER had an abortion & have lost 2, so no I’m not all for abortions, there are some people that can’t have children that really want one, no adopted babies can’t replace not being able to have any but it gives them a chance to love them & guide & protect them. I also believe the ones that place their babies up for adoption, give their families health history including the fathers, if @ all possible, yes, I understand the raped victims can’t give that, I also believe the fathers excluding tapers should have a part in decision making of the abortion, some women have abortions without any of the fathers knowing, & I also don’t believe in closed adoptions because I think they should be able to update family health history throughout that child’s life, because it might would save its life one day or prevent kin from marrying & getting with each other. I heard of a girl one time, giving up some of her kids, what would have happened if they had never known they were siblings & had met later in life. Why can’t the raped give their babies up for adoption instead of killing them? No matter if anybody on earth wants them or not or wants to love them or not, God does. All babies are GIFTS, treat them like they are. To all people who have/ believe in abortions: you wouldn’t want no one to kill you, as a matter of fact, if someone did that person would be charged for murder, so why shouldn’t abortionist be try, that baby/ babies have heartbeats & feelings just like you. To all who have had an abortion that regret, you can’t take it back but I really hope you can get help & move on, because it will affect you mentally. If people don’t want babies stop having sex, in case you don’t know what causes pregnancy, we’ll, now you know. Ok, I’m gonna stop ranting on here now.