![Opponents of Heartbeat Bill gather on the Statehouse steps, a few hours before a hearing on the bill in December. [Jo Ingles / ideastream]](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/95dc944/2147483647/strip/true/crop/980x551+0+0/resize/840x472!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Flegacy%2Fimages%2Fnews%2Fnpr%2F2019%2F05%2F673426051_1037203017.jpg)
ACLU of Ohio filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday challenging Ohio’s recent “heartbeat” abortion ban, which was signed into law last month.
The law, known formally as the “Human Rights Protection Act,” outlaws abortions when a fetal heartbeat can be detected. It would ban the practice as early as five or six weeks into a pregnancy, before most women know they’re pregnant. It does not include exceptions for cases of rape or incest.
The law is scheduled to take effect in July 10, unless blocked by a federal judge. Gov. Mike DeWine said he expected to defend the law in court.
“This assault on reproductive rights has been anticipated, and we’ve been preparing and perfecting our case. ‘Total ban’ is not inflammatory rhetoric — this is a ban on almost all abortions, and if the court does not block it, it will imperil the freedoms and health of Ohio women,” said Freda Levenson, Legal Director of the ACLU of Ohio, in a statement Wednesday.
BREAKING - Our favorite phrase, “we’ll see you in court” just got teeth; today we filed a federal lawsuit challenging the total abortion ban. We are doing everything in our power to prevent the law from taking effect on its scheduled date of July 10. #StopTheBans pic.twitter.com/bjgRc91bhV
— ACLU of Ohio (@acluohio) May 15, 2019
Ohio was the sixth state to pass a “Heartbeat Bill,” with Georgiafollowing soon after. Federal judges in several others states have blocked or struck down similar laws as unconstitutional.
Abortion opponents say the law is intended to provoke a U.S. Supreme Court case overturning “Roe v. Wade.” That case legalized abortion up until viability, approximately between 22-24 weeks into a pregnancy.
Backers of the heartbeat bill say they expected this @acluohio court challenge. @Faith2Action’s Janet Porter says the language was crafted in a way that it could withstand legal scrutiny, possibly by the US Supreme Court. Porter was a backer of the bill through its 8 yr fight.
— Jo Ingles (@joingles) May 15, 2019
Under the law, doctors who perform abortions after detecting a heartbeat would face a fifth-degree felony and up to a year in prison, and allows disciplinary action by the State Medical Board.
The lawsuit was brought by Preterm-Cleveland, Planned Parenthood of Greater Ohio and Planned Parenthood Southwest Ohio, Women's Med Corp, and Capital Care Network of Toledo.
“Make no mistake, unless blocked by the court, this law would ban approximately 90 percent of abortions in Ohio, which would disproportionately affect people of color, people struggling financially, and young people,” said a statement from Elizabeth Watson, staff attorney with the ACLU Reproductive Freedom Project.
Several other anti-abortion bills are currently being considered in the Ohio legislature. A House bill would ban most private insurance coverage for abortion services, and according to critics, would also ban many effective methods of birth control.
Another bill, yet to be introduced, would require doctors to provide information on how to reverse a medication abortion – a procedure that medical groups say isn’t based in science.
Ohio’s 2018 law banning the “dilation and evacuation” method of abortion, which is used most commonly after 12 weeks of pregnancy, has been blocked from taking effect by a federal judge.
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