20-week abortion ban withdrawn in House subcommittee

This afternoon, House Bill 2321, a dangerous measure intended to ban abortion at 20 weeks in Virginia, was withdrawn after members of the House of Delegates Constitutional Law subcommittee questioned the bill’s substance and impact.

“We are pleased that this cruel and misguided attack on abortion access in Virginia was withdrawn from consideration today,” said Planned Parenthood Advocates of Virginia Executive Director Cianti Stewart-Reid. “Women should not have to justify their personal medical decisions, but the reality is that abortion later in pregnancy is very rare and often happens under complex circumstances-the kind of situations where a woman and her doctor need every medical option available.”

Regardless of how one personally feels about abortion, it is critical that women have medically accurate information about their pregnancies. Bans on abortion after 20 weeks are based on unproven assertions about fetal pain. Highly respected medical organizations, including the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists in England, oppose measures like House Bill 2321 because the science does not support these claims.

“We have seen what happens when politicians interfere in these deeply personal medical decisions and tie doctors’ hands. In states that have passed 20-week abortion bans, some women and their families have been put into unimaginable situations-needing to end a pregnancy for serious medical reasons, but unable to do so,” said Stewart-Reid. “Thankfully, such an extreme measure that would further punish Virginia women and families facing such devastating circumstances did not get taken up for a vote.”

The limited exceptions of House Bill 2321 would have banned abortion even in situations where it is medically necessary. Every pregnant woman’s circumstances are different, and women must be able to access every medical option available to consider with their doctor and family.