In a landmark decision, Ohio Governor John Kasich has vetoed an abortion bill that would have banned the majority of abortions in the state as early as six weeks into the first trimester.
Yesterday, Kasich called the so-called 'heartbeat' abortion bill 'unconstitutional' and said it would cost the state thousands of dollars in legal battles.
The 'heartbeat' bill is so-called because it would prevent a woman from having an abortion as soon as a fetal heartbeat could be detected, which is as soon as six weeks into pregnancy.
According to the BBC, Mr Kasich – who ran as a 2016 Republican presidential candidate – said: 'The State of Ohio will be forced to pay hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars to cover the legal fees for the pro-choice activists' lawyers.'
However, lawmakers in Ohio still have the right to override his veto.
The news comes one day after artist and feminist Whitney Bell – who opted to have a termination last year – penned an emotional essay for ELLE on the importance of women having the choice to determine their fertility and the harsh limit a ban on abortion past six weeks has on a woman's right to choose.
Bell wrote when she found out she was pregnant, she was 'way past the 6 week mark, as most women who need an abortion are, because at 6 weeks a woman will have missed only one period'.
However, while Kasich's veto of the bill might be a small victory for some, the politician also signed a 20-week abortion ban – approved by the Republican-controlled Ohio Senate – and stated that the decision was the 'best, most legally sound and sustainable approach to protecting the sanctity of human life'.
The 20-week abortion limit is currently in place in 15 states across the US but critics of the ban see the limit as a way of undermining the 1973 Supreme Court ruling, known as Roe v Wade, which states – much like the UK – that abortion is legal between 22-24 weeks after conception.
In a year that has also seen President-elect Donald trump call for a total ban on abortion during his presidential campaign, in June, the state of Oklahoma passed the Humanity of the Unborn Child Act which would require all public toilets in restaurants, hospitals, public schools, hotels and nursing homes to post signs with anti-abortion messages to deter women from choosing the procedure.
Yesterday, Oklahoma's board of health planned to discuss regulations and the messaging of the signs, which would reportedly state:
According to the Associated Press, the Legislature didn't approve funding for the signage, which is estimated to cost businesses a total of £1.8 million and is be required to be in place by January 2018.
As Bell concluded in her essay:
'You have the freedom to believe in whatever you'd like. You can disagree with my abortion. No one is asking you to get one. . . but your God doesn't give you the right to control my body.'
Abortion rights are everyone's rights.
Katie O'Malley is the Site Director on ELLE UK. On a daily basis you’ll find Katie managing all digital workflow, editing site, video and newsletter content, liaising with commercial and sales teams on new partnerships and deals (eg Nike, Tiffany & Co., Cartier etc), implementing new digital strategies and compiling in-depth data traffic, SEO and ecomm reports. In addition to appearing on the radio and on TV, as well as interviewing everyone from Oprah Winfrey to Rishi Sunak PM, Katie enjoys writing about lifestyle, culture, wellness, fitness, fashion, and more.
