A Florida House bill is proposing women be required to see a physician twice within 24 hours to receive an abortion.
“I think that it will give them the ability to make a more informed decision,” said Rep. Jennifer Sullivan, a sponsor of HB 633. “I personally know many women who have been pressured into having an abortion.”
If passed, Florida would join 26 other states in requiring those seeking an abortion to wait a designated amount of time.
The bill also requires that the physician performing the procedure or the referring physician is in the room with the woman during visits.
Under current Florida law, a woman must be informed by her physician in-person of the nature and risks of the procedure and the probable age of the fetus. The woman also must be given an opportunity to view the ultrasound.
Some have called into question the constitutionality of such a bill, but Sullivan said she doesn’t think that’s an issue.
“We wrote it in such a way that it will be constitutional,” Sullivan said.
The language used in the bill has also been used in six other states and was challenged in five of those states, but the legislation was upheld each time, according to Sullivan.
HB 633 has passed all three committees and will now go to the House floor for a vote.
The House bill’s Senate counterpart, SB 724, passed its first committee March 31. If it passes its remaining two committees, Judiciary and Fiscal Policy, it will go to the Senate floor for a vote.
Planned Parenthood opposes the bill and has been urging people to sign their pledge in opposition to HB 633.
“It will make women who are disadvantaged even worse off,” said Dr. Christopher Estes, the chief medical officer for Planned Parenthood of South Florida and the Treasure Coast.
Women who live in rural areas will have a harder time getting to a clinic twice, Estes said. The bill will also affect women who will have difficulty arranging for childcare and time off from work.
“By the time a woman comes in for the procedure, she’s been thinking about it for a while,” Estes said.
Sullivan said she thinks the bill will pass the House. If passed, the bill would be effective July 1.
[A version of this story ran on page 8 on 4/3/2015 under the headline “State bill proposes 24-hour waiting period, doctors visits for abortions”]
