LINCOLN, Neb. — A group of lawmakers is pushing to make Nebraska the first state to outlaw most abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy based on the argument that the fetus might feel pain during the procedure.
Emboldened by the Supreme Court’s 2007 decision upholding a ban on what abortion-rights opponents call partial-birth abortions, in which a fetus is partially removed from the woman’s womb and then destroyed, the Nebraska legislators are seeking to ban all late-term abortions except when the mother’s life is threatened.
If the bill were to pass, it would surely face a court challenge. Medical and legal experts testified Thursday for and against the bill before the Legislature’s Judiciary Committee.
No other state has attempted to restrict abortions based on the pain a fetus might feel, said Mary Spaulding Balch, the legislative director for National Right to Life. Six states — Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Minnesota, Oklahoma and Utah — require that pregnant women be told an abortion could cause pain for the fetus.
