A Mississippi abortion ban after 15 weeks was passed by the state's House of Representatives on Thursday and only needs Gov. Phil Bryant's promised signature to take effect immediately.
Current state law bans abortions 20 weeks after the woman's last menstrual period and the new bill would cut five weeks off that limit, the Jackson Clarion Ledger reported.
Abortion opponents and proponents agreed that the courts will have the final say on the bill, the Clarion Ledger wrote.
"We know that bans below 20 weeks have been struck down," said Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood, a Democrat, per the Clarion Ledger. "We expect an immediate and expensive legal challenge."
Republican State Rep. Andy Gipson, who co-authored the bill with State Rep. Becky Currie, said that the state's effort to move the restriction earlier will save lives.
"Several hundred additional people will be protected," Gipson said, per the Clarion Ledger. "The state of Mississippi has legitimate and compelling interest in protecting the health of the mother and of the unborn child."
Bryant said he will sign the bill next week, when it will take effect immediately, CNN reported. Women who violate the law would face criminal charges while doctors could lose their license and be confronted with civil penalties.
"As I have repeatedly said, I want Mississippi to be the safest place in America for an unborn child," Bryant said. "House Bill 1510 will help us achieve that goal, and I look forward to signing it."
The bill has angered abortion proponents like NARAL Pro-Choice America, which issued a statement targeting the bill.
"Thanks to this anti-choice bill and its backers, women in Mississippi are now one dangerous step closer to losing their constitutional right to access abortion," NARAL vice president of communications and strategic research Adrienne Kimmell said.
"Let's be clear about the real outcomes for women if abortion ban bills like H.B. 1510 are signed into law: the number of abortions will not go down, and the number of deaths and injuries to women will rise. If the wellbeing and constitutional rights of women are of any importance to Governor Bryant, he will reject this measure promptly upon receiving it."
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