{"id":199912,"date":"2019-04-09T12:36:31","date_gmt":"2019-04-09T17:36:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.liveaction.org\/news\/?p=199912"},"modified":"2019-04-09T00:56:13","modified_gmt":"2019-04-09T05:56:13","slug":"arkansas-legislature-72-hour-abortion-waiting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/arkansas-legislature-72-hour-abortion-waiting\/","title":{"rendered":"Arkansas Legislature passes 72-hour abortion waiting period"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Last week, the Arkansas Legislature passed a bill expand the state’s former 48-hour waiting period between abortion counseling and an abortion procedure to 72 hours. The bill was approved by the Senate by a vote of 29-5, and Governor Asa Hutchinson has said he plans to sign the bill. The bill, says the Associated Press<\/a>, is considered “one of the strictest” in the country. Just six other states have a 72-hour waiting period:\u00a0Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Dakota,\u00a0and Utah.<\/p>\n

In March, Arkansas also\u00a0passed<\/a> an 18-week abortion ban — which was also, at the time, called “the strictest in the country.” But most Americans would prefer to\u00a0restrict abortion to the first trimester<\/a>, or first three months (12 weeks).<\/p>\n

However, several states have also passed “heartbeat laws” — laws that restrict abortion once a preborn baby’s heartbeat can be detected, usually around six weeks. The preborn baby’s heart begins to beat between 16 to 21 days<\/a> after fertilization occurs.<\/p>\n

READ:\u00a0Abortion pill reversal and abortion waiting periods save lives<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n