The House passed a midterm abortion ban on Wednesday, sparking a heated debate about human rights on the two-year anniversary of abortion doctor Kermit Gosnell’s conviction.
Lawmakers passed the measure 242-184 along party lines, with just four Democrats supporting it and four Republicans voting in opposition. It would render abortions 20 weeks after conception illegal, except in cases of rape, incest or if the mother’s life is endangered. The Senate is expected to vote on a similar measure sometime this year, although President Obama has said he would veto it.
Premised on the idea that a fetus can feel pain at 20 weeks of development, the measure would have limited practical impact, as only about 1 percent of all abortions are performed after that point in pregnancy.
But it hotly divided lawmakers nonetheless. Republicans argued the measure is a moderate step that protects fetuses nearly able to survive outside the womb, while Democrats blasted them for trying to chip away at abortion rights spelled out under Roe v. Wade.
“Over halfway through a pregnancy an unborn baby deserves the protection of the law,” said Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, fourth-ranking Republican from Washington.
Rep. Julia Brownley, D-Calif., said the measure “ignores very real and serious reasons a woman may need an abortion later in pregnancy.”
“The bill also treats doctors as criminals for providing care that has been the law of the land for 42 years,” she said.
Republicans referred numerous times to Gosnell, the Philadelphia abortion doctor who was convicted and sentenced in 2013 for murdering three babies born alive after attempted abortions.
“Today there are Kermit Gosnells … all over America, inflicting not only violence and death on very young children, but excruciating pain as well,” said Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J. “This is human rights legislation.”
Whether there’s enough scientific evidence to prove fetuses can feel pain at 20 weeks is disputed. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists say there’s not, although supporters of the ban note that painkillers are given to fetuses during surgery.
“My data shows the majority of medial opinion says the fetus does not [feel pain],” said Rep. Steve Cohen, D-Tenn., adding that the 20-week ban is “about the beginning of the end of abortion.”
“This is an anti-abortion bill, it’s not about fetal pain,” he said.
The measure passed Wednesday had been modified from an earlier version that some female Republicans objected to. Instead of reporting to authorities, a woman who is raped and seeking a post-20-week abortion under the exemption would have to receive counseling at least 48 hours before the procedure.
