The governor of Tennessee has said he will sign a new bill that prohibits abortion once a fetal heartbeat is detected, Christian Headlines reported Monday. Sponsored by Gov. Bill Lee earlier this year, the bill also bans abortion on the grounds of sex, race, or a diagnosis of Down’s syndrome.
On Wednesday a federal appeals court in Missouri upheld a state law requiring abortion clinics to give their clients a booklet stating that abortion will end the life of a separate human being, Christian Headlines (CH) reports. The case was originally brought by a member of “The Satanic Temple” who said the law violated her religious beliefs and Establishment and Free Exercise Clauses of the First Amendment.
Newly unsealed court documents show that top executives at Planned Parenthood were familiar with its organ-harvesting operations and privately discussed lucrative deals even as the abortion giant publicly denied profiting from the sale of body parts obtained from aborted babies.
Tensions were rising Saturday after U.S. President Donald Trump demanded that states allow churches and other houses of worship to reopen from stay-at-home restrictions related to the coronavirus pandemic. Saying America needed more prayer, Trump threatened to override governors’ orders though he faced constitutional limits to enforce these policies.
Thirty-seven Planned Parenthood affiliates received a total of $80 million in loans from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) intended to help small businesses in the COVID-19 pandemic, Fox News has reported exclusively. The federal government now says the abortion provider must pay back the money it received. Explaining its position, the government said Planned Parenthood is a federation of affiliates with over 500 employees and should have known it does not qualify for small business aid.
The U.S. Supreme Court will decide whether nuns could be forced to facilitate abortion-causing drugs and other contraceptives such as sterilizations. Its first liberty case began Wednesday involving the Little Sisters of the Poor organization, which has been supporting the poor and dying since 1839.
A senior US government official has said that clinics run by abortion provider Planned Parenthood will not qualify for a federal aid program being offered to small businesses during the COVID-19 crisis. Part of the wider Cares Act, the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) is intended to support businesses with fewer than 500 employees.
Texas abortion providers can continue to offer pill-based abortions during a state order banning non-essential medical procedures, Freebeacon.com reports. The order, given by Texas governor Greg Abbott (R) on March 22, was issued in an effort to conserve hospital beds and medical supplies for coronavirus patients.
Planned Parenthood of California is supporting a bill that would prevent health insurance companies from giving parents information about “sensitive” medical procedures received by young adult or minor children listed on their same policy. “Sensitive services” would include abortions and certain transgender treatments and sex-change operations, among various others. The California Family Council (CFC) has advised concerned residents to contact the office of Senator Hannah-Beth Jackson (D), who is sponsoring the bill.
A federal Court of Appeals has allowed Texas to continue its ban on most abortions during the coronavirus pandemic. Tuesday’s ruling overturns a lower court’s decision to block the state’s ban on non-essential abortions. The ban remains in place while the case moves on to be heard by a federal court in Austin next week.
Federal judges have ordered Texas and Ohio to allow abortions to continue during the coronavirus pandemic after lawsuits from Planned Parenthood.
An Argentinian appellate court has upheld the 2019 criminal conviction of a doctor who refused to give a rape victim a late-term abortion. In a divided ruling on March 23, two judges found Dr. Rodríguez Lastra had ‘failed to comply with the duties of a public official’ when he refused to perform the abortion in 2017. Lastra told the court his refusal was in order to protect the lives of both mother and child.
Rev. Franklin Graham applauded New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s claim that no life is ‘expendable’ amid the coronavirus pandemic but said the Democratic governor should consider his remarks in light of an abortion law he signed.
The Oklahoma Senate voted (36-8) last Thursday to prohibit abortion as soon as a baby’s heartbeat can be heard and/or as soon as a baby’s brainwaves are present, which is usually around six weeks into pregnancy. The bill is now in the Oklahoma House, which is majority Republican, and it is expected to pass.
The Mississippi House of Representatives passed a bill that, if enacted, will ban abortions performed due to an unborn baby’s race, sex, or possible genetic abnormalities.
Abortions in England and Wales have reached record-breaking levels, new figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show.
Chief Justice John Roberts publicly condemned a top Democrat for threatening comments aimed at two justices as the Supreme Court considers a case on abortion.
On Monday, Gov. Jim Justice (R-WV) signed a bill requiring doctors to provide medical care to a baby that survives an abortion.
A bill requiring parental consent before a minor can have an abortion recently passed in the Florida State Legislature and now awaits the governor’s signature; Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis has said he will sign the bill into law.
On Wednesday, the nation’s highest court takes up its first major abortion case since the confirmation of two new justices. Pro-life activists hope this will give the court a pro-life majority for the first time in decades and this case might have an impact on the future of abortion in America.