Florida Senate set to approve 6-week abortion limit

Share
reproductive rights rally St. Pete
"Act Up Protect Abortion" sign at rally for reproductive rights in St. Petersburg, Florida. By Seán Kinane/WMNF News (3 May 2022).

The Florida Senate on Thursday took up a bill that would prevent abortions after six weeks of pregnancy and positioned it for an expected vote Monday.

The bill (SB 300), sponsored by Sen. Erin Grall, R-Vero Beach, is one of the most controversial issues of this year’s legislative session and comes after the Republican-controlled Legislature in 2022 passed a 15-week limit.

GOP senators Thursday rejected a series of proposed changes sought by Democrats.

Earlier Thursday, the House Health & Human Services Committee voted 13-7 along almost-straight party lines to approve the House version of the bill (HB 7).

Rep. Traci Koster, R-Tampa, joined Democrats in voting against the bill.

Republican supporters said the goal is to protect life.

“There isn’t a person in this room that didn’t go through a womb to be born,” Rep. Ralph Massullo, R-Lecanto, said. “We’ve heard a lot about people that respect life and want us to respect their rights. Well, we need to respect the rights of the unborn, just as much.”

But opponents said the proposal would deny access to health care for women.

“Regulating one’s body is wrong. It’s wrong,” Rep. Marie Woodson, D-Hollywood, said. “We cannot sit here and regulate people’s bodies and make decisions about what a woman should do, because I am not in the position.”

With Thursday’s approval by the committee, the House bill is ready to go to the full House.

©2023 The News Service of Florida

Leave a Reply

  • (will not be published)

XHTML: You can use these tags: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <s> <strike> <strong>

You may also like

student meal
Next school year Hillsborough public schools are offering free meals

Hillsborough Public Schools are offering students free meals for the...

Correspondence Through Poetry. A Mind-Numbing Week.

Father Verses Sons: A Correspondence in Poems by Herbert Gold...

The sound of change: Music’s influence on anti-war and human rights movements

Throughout history, music has served as a powerful catalyst for...

a man in a tye dye shirt talking on a radio microphone
Recreational pot for Florida is on the ballot this fall—let’s talk about it

In four months, Florida voters have the opportunity to vote...

Ways to listen

WMNF is listener-supported. That means we don't advertise like a commercial station, and we're not part of a university.

Ways to support

WMNF volunteers have fun providing a variety of needed services to keep your community radio station alive and kickin'.

Follow us on Instagram

The Morning Show Thursday
Player position: