Oklahoma City - The Oklahoma House on Thursday gave final approval to an abortion ban similar to Texas-style, one that prohibits the procedure after about six weeks of pregnancy, before many women even know they are pregnant.
The bill approved by the GOP-led House on a 68-12 vote, heads to Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt, who is expected to sign it within days.
The abortion bill, dubbed the Oklahoma Heartbeat Act, prohibits abortions once cardiac activity can be detected in the fetus, which experts say is roughly six weeks into a pregnancy.
A similar bill approved in Texas last year led to a dramatic reduction in the number of abortions performed in that state, sending many women seeking the procedure to Oklahoma and other surrounding states.
The measure approved on Thursday has an “emergency” provision, it takes effect immediately after the governor signs it, and will immediately end most abortions in Oklahoma.
Before the Texas ban took effect last year, about 40 women from Texas had abortions performed in Oklahoma each month, according to data from the Oklahoma State Department of Health. That number jumped to 222 Texas women in September and 243 in October, the agency reported.
Federal court orders cases brought against Texas pro-life law dismissed
A federal court on Tuesday ordered a lower court to dismiss all legal challenges brought against the enforcement mechanism of a Texas abortion law, a move which a pro-life group called a “substantial pro-life victory.”
The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals on April 26 remanded the case, brought by a number of abortion providers and pro-abortion organizations, to the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, with instructions to dismiss all challenges to the private enforcement provisions of the Texas Heartbeat Act.
Pro-life leaders have said that the Texas law’s success in court should lead more pro-life state legislatures to follow Texas’ lead, a process that's already underway in Idaho, South Dakota, Ohio, and a growing number of other states.
-AP/CNA