File photo credit: Gov. Gary Herbert, via Twitter
SALT LAKE CITY – It’s not the most restrictive abortion law in the nation, but it’s close. HB-136 originally set the limit for legal abortion at 15-weeks; the same as Mississippi. But, the House revised the bill and now sets a limit of up to 18-weeks for a woman to terminate her pregnancy.
Governor Gary Herbert signed the bill into law yesterday. Last month, the self-proclaimed “pro-life guy” said scientific advancements may warrant another look at abortion laws.
Both Planned Parenthood and the ACLU already announced plans to fight the new law citing the Supreme Court decision of Roe vs. Wade making abortion a constitutional right.
The ban at 18-weeks gestation adds to other restrictions Utah places on women seeking to terminate their pregnancies pointed out by a joint statement from the ACLU and Planned Parenthood states “People must complete state-mandated online education, a face-to-face informed consent session designed to discourage people seeking abortion services and then wait for 72-hours before receiving abortion care.”