Iowa six-week abortion ban to take effect Monday, judge rules

An Iowa district judge has ruled that a law banning most abortions as early as six weeks takes effect on Monday, July 29.

District Judge Jeffrey Farrell said that the injunction blocking the law from enforcement will be lifted at 8:00 a.m. on Monday. The order came down a day after the Iowa Supreme Court denied Planned Parenthood’s petition for a hearing of its case to challenge the law. In a decision the judge upheld the 4-3 decision made in June.

Governor Kim Reynolds praised the order saying “Today is a victory for life. As the fetal heartbeat law finally takes effect, our work will continue to strengthen a culture of life in Iowa,” Reynolds said in a statement. “I remain deeply committed to supporting women in planning for motherhood, promoting the importance of fatherhood, elevating adoption, and protecting in vitro fertilization (IVF). Families are the foundation of society, and policies that encourage strong families will make our state and country strong for generations to come.”

The 2023 law will ban abortion following the moment a heartbeat can be detected at approximately 6 weeks of gestation. The law will allow for rape and incest when reported in a specified time frame, and to save the life of the mother.

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PS July 26, 2024, 3:29 pm Hi Valerie… In your ‘news reporting’ of the two business day notice of when Iowa’s law banning most abortions becomes effective, you have quoted our governor as saying “… I remain deeply committed to supporting women in planning for motherhood…”. I’m not sure the governor’s deep commitment extends to support of women’s reproductive rights. For any of your readers who may be interested in a potential ‘Page 2’ (thank you Paul Harvey!) of your news story, I include the following information as contained in the US Health and Human Services website (https://reproductiverights.gov/). Legal rights to access reproductive health care in the US: 1) Your Right to Emergency Care • Federal law (EMTALA) requires most emergency rooms to offer any person who requests it an appropriate medical screening exam; • If the ER determines an emergency medical condition exists, treatment must be offered until stabilized, or an appropriate transfer to another facility; • An emergency medical condition is usually acute symptoms that, in the absence of immediate medical attention, could reasonably be expected to place the person’s health in serious jeopardy. Emergencies with pregnant patients may include, ectopic pregnancy, complications of a pregnancy loss, or emergent hypertensive disorders. In some instances, the treatment reasonably necessary to stabilize a pregnant woman’s emergency medical condition may be an abortion; • These federal rights preempt any directly conflicting state laws or mandates that apply to specific procedures (Texas may be an exception.). 2) Your Right to Birth Control Coverage • The Affordable Care Act requires most employer-based health plans and private health insurance plans to cover family planning counseling and to cover certain birth control methods with no out-of-pocket costs to you if you have a prescription; • Birth control methods available over-the-counter include emergency contraception like Plan B®, condoms, and birth control pills like Opill®. 3) Your Right to Access Medication • The law prohibits pharmacies that receive federal financial assistance from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, and disability in their health programs and activities to dispense medications. 4) Your Right to Access Abortion • As a result of the US Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, access to abortion will depend on the state you live in even more than before. • Mifepristone, in a regimen with misoprostol, has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) since 2000 for the termination of early pregnancy, and is safe and effective when used as directed. Mifepristone for medication abortion currently is available for dispensing by mail by certified prescribers or by certified pharmacies for prescriptions issued by certified prescribers, in addition to in-person dispensing in clinics, medical offices, and hospitals. See https://www.plancpills.org/. HSS reminds of the US Supreme Court’s unanimous decision June 13, 2024 upholding this federal right. • If you need information on your state’s laws, legal help, or help paying for an abortion, you may consider this website: AbortionFinder.org. 5) Your Right to Coverage of Other Preventive Health Services • Most employer health plans and health insurance plans must cover certain other preventive health services with no out-of-pocket costs because of the Affordable Care Act. Specifically, they are required to cover many women’s preventive health services. “Now you know … the rest of the story. Good day!” -Paul Smalley

News : Iowa six-week abortion ban to take effect Monday, judge rules

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