The Pennsylvania Senate is set to consider new limits on abortion, following a contentious review in committee Monday.
Senate Bill 3 bans elective abortions after 20 weeks from a pregnant woman’s last menstrual period, compared to 24 weeks in current law. Bill sponsor Sen. Michele Brooks, R-Mercer, says 15 other states have similar limits.
During Monday’s committee hearing, state Sen. Lisa Boscola, D-Lehigh/Northampton, shared personal experiences about her struggles with trying to have children as she blasted the “cookie cutter approach” to limiting abortion rights, according to an account of her remarks on Twitter by Pennsylvania Senate Democrats.
Senate Bill 3 lacks provisions for rape victims, said Boscola, who spoke out as the lone woman on the Judiciary Committee that reviewed the proposal in Harrisburg.
The bill also would ban a procedure it calls a “dismemberment abortion” before 20 weeks and make it a felony to violate it. Supporters said the ban does not apply to a procedure commonly called a dilation-and-evacuation procedure, the most common method of second-trimester abortion.
The term “dismemberment abortion” is not used by medical professionals or groups, such as the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
The bill would leave in place exceptions for when a physician believes the procedure would save the mother’s life or prevent the impairment of a major bodily function of a pregnant woman. In addition to rape victims, it does not offer exceptions for pregnancies caused by incest.
It also would add a requirement that a medical consultation with a physician be in person before an abortion.
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The Pennsylvania Medical Society opposes the bill. In a letter sent to lawmakers last years, the doctors’ group said the proposed changes would interfere with the relationship between physicians and patients and set a dangerous precedent by legislating specific treatment protocols.
The measure still requires floor votes in the House and Senate, but it is expected to eventually reach Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf’s desk. He reiterated Monday he would veto it, and calls it “radical and unconstitutional.”
Last year, a nearly identical version passed the House, 132-65, but it stalled just short of a Senate vote and died.
Brooks, the bill sponsor, says the legislation protects “the health and well-being of a pregnant female” and notes the importance to unborn babies of the 20-week cutoff.
“By 20 weeks, babies have developed all of the physical structures necessary to experience pain, and studies have shown that they react to painful stimuli,” she says in a memo about the proposal.
Here is a look at some of Boscola’s statements Monday, carried by PA Senate Dems on Twitter:
[<a href=”//storify.com/lehighvalley/sen-lisa-boscola” target=”_blank”>View the story “Sen. Lisa Boscola gets personal in battling Pa. abortion bill” on Storify</a>]<h1>Sen. Lisa Boscola gets personal in battling Pa. abortion bill</h1><h2>The Democrat serving Lehigh and Northampton counties raised questions as the lone woman on the Pennsylvania Senate Judiciary Committee reviewing the proposal.</h2><p>Storified by <a HACKED_LINKs://storify.com/lehighvalley”>lehighvalleylive.com</a>· Tue, Feb 07 2017 01:24:55 </p><div>.@SenLisaBoscola if we are really a "family-oriented body," we need to look at all the difficult health decisions. https://t.co/jtA7hsIwC9PaSenateDems</div><div>Boscola blasted Senate Bill 3 as a "cookie cutter approach" to a difficult family decision.</div><div>.@SenLisaBoscola, speaking on SB3: in most instances, a FAMILY makes these difficult decisions.PaSenateDems</div><div>.@SenLisaBoscola: this bill is a "cookie cutter approach" to a complicated healthcare decision.PaSenateDems</div><div>.@SenLisaBoscola: "Yeah, I’m upset, because I see this as eroding the rights of families, not just women"PaSenateDems</div><div>The proposal bans elective abortions after 20 weeks from a pregnant woman's last menstrual period, compared to 24 weeks in current law. </div><div>Take a look at SB3: https://t.co/VXPeTPaXxtPaSenateDems</div><div>Bill sponsor, Sen. Michele Brooks, R-Mercer, says the measure "would not apply in situations where an abortion is necessary to prevent the death or impairment of a major bodily function of a woman." It is needed, she says, to prohibit an abortion practice called dilation and evacuation, which she describes as "<a HACKED_LINK://www.legis.state.pa.us//cfdocs/Legis/CSM/showMemoPublic.cfm?chamber=S&SPick=20170&cosponId=21603″>tearing a fetus apart by its limbs</a>, also called dismemberment abortion."</div><div>It's opposed by Gov. Tom Wolf, a first-term Democrat.</div><div>#SB3 limiting women’s health care choices is moving forward without even a hearing. I’ll veto if it gets to my desk. https://t.co/vw98XHVGwd https://t.co/b8Wp19NuD5Governor Tom Wolf</div><div>Boscola questioned the effects on medical practices, and on rape victims.</div><div>.@SenLisaBoscola says she’s heard from a lot of medical professionals who aren’t happy about SB3; they say it inhibits their practice.PaSenateDems</div><div>.@SenLisaBoscola: SB3 currently has no exceptions for rape survivors.PaSenateDems</div><div>. @SenLisaBoscola: Very few abortions occur in 20-24 weeks. They often arise because something is seriously wrong.PaSenateDems</div><div>She also shared very personal information during the hearing. </div><div>.@SenLisaBoscola urges women in attendance to stand up: "there’s only one woman sitting on this Judiciary Committee."PaSenateDems</div><div>.@SenLisaBoscola "there’s nothing that breaks my heart more."PaSenateDems</div><div>.@SenLisaBoscola notes that she’s had five pregnancies, but ended in miscarriages.PaSenateDems</div><div>.@SenLisaBoscola: I would never, ever put this decision [to terminate a pregnancy] on any family.PaSenateDems</div><div>The Senate Judiciary Committee voted to send the bill to the full Senate for consideration. </div><div>Judiciary Committee Minority Chairman. Daylin Leach, D-Delaware/Montgomery, said Monday’s vote “shows that the Republicans continue to be obsessed with an extreme right-wing religious agenda meant to subjugate women.”</div><div>.@daylinleach’s statement after the #PASenate Judiciary Cmte’s vote today on SB3, the abortion ban: https://t.co/I2sprPOw7V https://t.co/F604fdwlF5Steve Hoenstine</div>
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @KurtBresswein. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
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