Lawmakers in Nebraska have put forward legislation that would take the state from its current second-trimester abortion limit to the earliest weeks of pregnancy.
According to Nebraska’s state legislature, current law allows abortion up to 20 weeks of pregnancy. The bill, L.B. 626, would prohibit abortions after fetal heartbeat detection, which occurs around six weeks of pregnancy. Other states, like Texas, that introduced this kind of legislation saw a massive decrease in abortions once it took effect.
According to Nebraska Public Media, the legislation has garnered support from both Republicans and Democrats. Reportedly, the bill needs two more votes to have enough support to become law.
And, the proposed legislation would protect unborn life in a state that is home to a notorious late-term abortion provider. Nebraska is home to LeRoy Carhart, a physician well-known for providing women with abortions in the third trimester of pregnancy. He was involved in two high-profile Supreme Court cases involving “intact dilation and extraction” types of abortions that occur late in pregnancy. In 2007, the United States Supreme Court upheld the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003 in the case Gonzales v. Carhart. Carhart’s clinic in Bellevue, Nebraska, provides abortions up to 20 weeks of pregnancy, and he travels to Maryland to provide abortions in the final weeks of pregnancy, according to American Life League. Pro-life organization Live Action reported that Carhart has “maimed and killed multiple women during abortions.”
Polling conducted by WPA Intelligence for Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, Nebraska Catholic Conference, Nebraska Family Alliance, and Nebraska Right to Life shows that 58 percent of likely voters would strongly support a law that protects unborn life from the moment a heartbeat is detected. In the poll, 72 percent of likely voters said they would reject legislation that would allow abortion on demand up until birth.
“Science tells us once a baby’s heartbeat can be detected they have over a 90% chance of surviving to the day they are born,” Adam Schwend, SBA Pro-Life America’s western regional director told Townhall.
“The Nebraska heartbeat bill will protect 2,000 babies with beating hearts every year and is a bill supported by almost 60% of Nebraskans,” he added. “This law, along with the Nebraska Pregnancy Help Act that would create a tax credit to incentivize donations to centers that help pregnant women and new moms, will make Nebraska a shining example on the issue of life.”
According to SBA, more than a dozen states have already taken action to protect unborn life with the potential to save more than 200,000 lives in the first year in the aftermath of Dobbs.