{"id":225878,"date":"2020-06-19T12:29:38","date_gmt":"2020-06-19T17:29:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.liveaction.org\/news\/?p=225878"},"modified":"2020-06-19T12:46:50","modified_gmt":"2020-06-19T17:46:50","slug":"tennessee-banning-abortions-detectable-heartbeat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/tennessee-banning-abortions-detectable-heartbeat\/","title":{"rendered":"Tennessee legislature passes bill banning the killing of preborn children after detectable heartbeat"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Shortly after midnight Friday morning, senators in Tennessee passed a bill banning abortions after a preborn child’s heartbeat can be detected.<\/p>\n

House Bill 2263<\/a>, which passed the Senate with a 23-5 vote, also bans abortion due to the child’s sex or race, or due to a diagnosis of Down syndrome. The bill’s only listed exception is to save the life of the mother (an exception\u00a0which is not actually medically necessary – read more here<\/a>). There are no exceptions for rape or incest. Abortion providers who violate the law or who fail to perform an ultrasound prior to an abortion face felony charges.\u00a0Also within the bill is the requirement that abortion facilities must post signs and inform patients that chemical abortions (the abortion pill) may be reversible. Violators of that mandate would face a $10,000 fine.<\/p>\n

The last minute-measure came as a surprise to many, after earlier indications from the Senate that the House legislation was not a priority due to the Coronavirus pandemic. The ACLU responded<\/a> almost immediately with a promise to challenge the law in court.<\/p>\n

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One of the most important things we can do to be pro-family is to protect the rights of the most vulnerable in our state, and there is none more vulnerable than the unborn.<\/p>\n

— Gov. Bill Lee (@GovBillLee) June 19, 2020<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n