(Photo by Sean Rayford/Getty Images)
South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley has signed a bill into law that makes
it illegal for women in the state to obtain abortions after 20 weeks of
pregnancy. South Carolina is the 13th state to enact such a law, after
Alabama, Arkansas, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nebraska,
North Dakota, Oklahoma, Texas, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.
CNN
reports the bill, called the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act,
says that medical evidence supports fetuses can feel pain as early as 20
weeks.
According to the bill, "After twenty weeks, the unborn child reacts to
stimuli that would be recognized as painful if applied to an adult
human, for example, by recoiling.”
The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists argued that
“fetal perception of pain is unlikely before the third trimester.” The
third trimester starts at 28 weeks of pregnancy.
"Facts are very important, especially when discussing the health of
women and the American public,” the organization said in a statement.
Physicians who violate the new South Carolina law will be charged with a
misdemeanor offense, with a maximum sentence of three years in jail and
a fine.
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