Fate of “24 hours for life” bill is uncertain

By Senator Kevin Bryant from his Blog From The Back Bench

H3245 is a bill requiring a 24 hour waiting period before a mother can obtain an abortion. The conference committee (Sen. Brad Hutto, Sen. Jake Knotts, Rep. Greg Delleney, Rep. Ted Vick, Rep. Wendy Nanny, and myself) has been meeting for several weeks now.

Here’s a summary of the hangups.

Provider of ultrasounds

The Senate version gives the mother the choice of obtaining the optional ultrasound from a variety of sources (abortion clinic, crisis pregnancy clinic, family doctor, ob/gyn, etc.). The House version only allows for the abortion clinic to provide the ultrasound.

Printed materials

The Senate version gives the option of viewing the materials on the internet, receiving in the mail, or picking them up at the abortion clinic. The House version requires the mother to obtain the materials from the abortion clinic.

I voted for the House version out of  committee, but I now prefer the Senate version for the following reasons:

First of all, I don’t trust the abortion doctor to give a clear view and acurate picture of the baby. He’ll certainly zoom out, tell her its a blob, take her money, and proceed. If she chooses to go elsewhere for the ultrasound, she’ll definitely get more accurate information about organ, tissue, fingers, and toe development.

Also, I can imagine the abortion clinic handing her a stack of materials, tell her she doesn’t want to read the “propaganda”, get her signature of reciept, take her money, and proceed the next day. IF she choosed to gather her information elsewhere, she may read it. The informed conset website by Michigan some very accurate information about fetal development. take a look

Also, the Senate version requires the website and printed materials to contain a list (and links) of free ultrasound providers desiring to be listed. During this reflection period, she may seek advice from outside sources now that she’s aware of them.

In a nutshell, the House version creates barriers and the Senate version encourages the mother to know her child before making this decision.

As I’ve stated many times before, H. 3245 doesn’t ban abortions. If it did, I’d support it. However, H. 3245 can slow the decision process down and encourage the mother to consider all of the available information and options.