PIERRE, S.D. — The South Dakota Senate approved a bill Wednesday that would require women to wait 72 hours before they could have an abortion and to submit to counseling about why they shouldn’t go through with the procedure.
The state Senate voted 21-13 in favor of the bill, sending it to Republican Gov. Dennis Daugaard for approval. Daugaard, who generally opposes abortion rights, declined to say whether he intends to sign it.
About half the states, including South Dakota, make women wait 24 hours before going through with an abortion. But the 72-hour wait would be the longest in the nation, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a research group that supports abortion rights.
Under the new guidelines, a woman would have to undergo counseling at one of several state-approved “pregnancy help centers,” all of which seek to persuade women not to have abortions. No other state has such a requirement, according to the American Civil Liberties Union of South Dakota.
Sponsor Sen. Al Novstrup, R-Aberdeen, said it would better protect women from being pressured into having abortions and better inform them of other options. Opponents contend it would place an undue burden on abortion seekers, violating their rights by interfering with their access to medical care.
