TALLAHASSEE, Florida (LifeSiteNews) — Florida’s Republican-led legislature on Thursday approved a pro-life heartbeat bill that would effectively ban nearly all abortions in the Sunshine State. The measure now awaits approval from Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is expected to sign it into law.
The Florida House greenlit the measure in a 70-40 vote after shooting down numerous Democrat-proposed amendments during hours of debate. The state Senate previously voted 26-13 on April 3 to pass its version of the bill, SB 300, known as the “Heartbeat Protection Act.”
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has repeatedly committed to signing pro-life laws and has specifically affirmed that he would sign a heartbeat bill if it landed on his desk.
READ: Florida Senate passes bill to ban abortions after a baby’s heartbeat can be detected
The legislation approved Thursday would make it illegal to deliberately kill an unborn baby after his heartbeat can be detected, which is usually about six weeks’ gestation. Since many women don’t even know they’re pregnant at six weeks, the bill would effectively prohibit nearly all abortions in the state.
The measure would also block abortionists from using telehealth services to facilitate chemical abortions remotely and allocate $30 million to bolster state support for families, providing “counseling or mentoring services as well as providing non-medical material assistance to families such as car seats, cribs, clothing, formula, and diapers.”
UPDATE (03/07/23): Walgreens won’t dispense abortion pills in 20 states
The pressure is paying off. Walgreens’ plan to dispense abortion pills nationwide is now in tatters, with the pharmaceutical giant announcing that it won’t mail the pills to, or sell them within, 20 states.
The news comes after 20 Republican attorneys general warned CVS and Walgreens that doing so would be in violation of federal law and that they were opening themselves to penalties.
But we can’t rest on our laurels with this boycott: Walgreens and CVS will only listen to us when their profits are threatened — we need a HUGE boycott so that blood money they get from selling abortion pills is dwarfed by the profits they lose when pro-life America shops elsewhere.
Even Politico admitted in its reporting that “pressure” from pro-life voters like you helped change Walgreens’ plans, so now we’re asking you to take the next step: simply share this petition with your friends and ask them to join the boycott.
Thank you!
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Walgreens and CVS will begin selling mifepristone — a powerful chemical that kills unborn children in the womb — if pro-life America does not ACT NOW.
Pro-life Americans MUST STOP the widespread sale and distribution of mifepristone by sending a message that only big-box stores will understand: A NATIONAL BOYCOTT OF WALGREENS AND CVS.
Walgreens and CVS are the newest back-door channels for the pro-abortion movement, now that the Supreme Court has overturned Roe v. Wade.
Will you act now to STOP abortion drugs from reaching your pharmacy?
Our work in the pro-life movement is FAR from over, especially now that Walgreens and CVS have chosen to push deadly drugs in their stores and in our communities!
SIGN and SEND a message to Walgreens and CVS! This is completely unacceptable!
We must stop abortion from reaching our pharmacies and stop the abortion industry from poisoning our communities — before it’s too late.
These big-box stores respond only to profit. The pro-life movement must enact a national boycott if the abortion industry dares flood our neighborhoods!
SIGN and SEND a strong message to Walgreens and CVS: unless they immediately reverse course, the entire pro-life movement will BOYCOTT their stores!
SIGN NOW and send a clear message!
MORE INFORMATION:
CVS & Walgreens announce plans to dispense abortion pills after Biden FDA loosens restrictions
Critics have decried the legislation as a near-total abortion ban, something that will establish Florida as among the most pro-life states in the nation. Narrow carve-outs would still allow for abortions to save the life of the mother (something pro-lifers say is never truly necessary), and permit abortions up to 15 weeks in cases of rape, incest, or human trafficking, if the pregnant mom can provide necessary documentation e.g. a police report.
Chemical abortions would remain legal in the state if dispensed in person or by a licensed physician, according to the AP.
Despite its exceptions, the proposed legislation has the potential to drastically reduce the number of abortions committed in Florida, which has seen a recent uptick in abortions as neighboring states implement broad legislation to protect the unborn. According to one analysis, the number of births following passage of Texas’ heartbeat law increased by 5,000 compared with the same timeframe the previous year.
Republican Rep. Jenna Persons-Mulicka, who brought the Florida measure to the state House, said the bill provides an “opportunity to lead the national debate about the importance of protecting life and giving every child the opportunity to be born and find his or her purpose.”
Though Gov. DeSantis is expected to sign the law, it wouldn’t take effect until a final decision is rendered in an ongoing case concerning the state’s current 15-week abortion ban.
The more modest pro-life law has been beset by court challenges since DeSantis signed it into law in April 2022. Abortionists argue the measure violates the state constitution.
Thanks to a decades-old state Supreme Court ruling, Florida currently recognizes a “right to abortion” under the state constitution’s privacy amendment, effectively preventing the passage of meaningful statewide pro-life laws.
However, Florida’s Supreme Court may now be in a position to overrule its 1989 decision, thanks to DeSantis’ conservative judicial appointments and the U.S. Supreme Court’s June overthrow of Roe v. Wade, which had established a federal “right to abortion” in all 50 states.
In January, Florida’s Supreme Court agreed to hear a challenge to the state’s 15-week ban, paving a way for the rollback of the statewide “right to abortion” and changing the trajectory of pro-life legislation in Florida. The Court has allowed the state to continue enforcing the law for now, at least until it reaches a final verdict.
Once signed by DeSantis, Florida’s new heartbeat law would take effect 30 days after the Supreme Court affirms that pro-life laws do not violate the state constitution.
The moves to expand pro-life protections in Florida come as DeSantis is widely anticipated to announce a presidential run after the end of his state’s current legislative session in May.