A
controversial bill that bans abortions in the state after 20 weeks unless there
is a medical emergency passed the Senate Judiciary Committee Thursday night and
now heads to the full Senate where it is expected to pass.
The
committee approved the bill on a voice vote, despite a warning from the
committee’s attorney that it is unconstitutional because it prohibits abortions
prior to fetal viability (generally thought to be 23-24 weeks).
Pro-life
lawmakers and lobbyists, including John Carey of West
Virginians for Life, are pushing the bill. They argue that
the unborn child/fetus can feel pain by the end of the fifth month of the
pregnancy, and the state has an interest at that point in protecting the baby.
“And
certainly the people of West Virginia
Carey
also disputed the argument that the bill is unconstitutional.
However,
Dr. Lori Tucker, an OBGYN from Princeton ,
W.Va.
“This
is not going to stop the girl from getting an abortion; she’s going to go
somewhere else to get that,” an emotional Tucker told the committee. “The one
thing this gets done (is), it takes the doctors in that 20 to 24 week span and
ties our hands.”
The
House has already passed a different version of the bill, so if the Senate
passes HB 4588, lawmakers from both chambers will have to agree on a compromise
before the midnight Saturday end of the regular session.
According
to the Guttmacher Institute, West
Virginia West Virginia
Under
the bill, a doctor can be found guilty of a misdemeanor and fined up to $4,000
for a violation.
If the bill passes and Gov.
Tomblin signs it, West Virginia
