Pro-Life Bill Offers Women Information About Perinatal Hospice

Abortion, ,

Today Rep. Clint Penzo (R – Springdale) and Sen. Kim Hammer (R – Benton) filed H.B. 1453, the Perinatal Hospice Information Act.

This good bill supplements Arkansas’ informed-consent laws for abortion by requiring abortionists to give women information about perinatal hospice.

Modern medicine has made it easier and easier to test unborn children for deadly fetal abnormalities that may cause the child to die during pregnancy or shortly after birth. Some studies indicate that most children who test positive for these abnormalities are aborted.

H.B. 1453 requires abortion doctors to inform women about perinatal hospice services available in Arkansas and nationally.

Perinatal hospice is available when an unborn child is not expected to survive long after birth. The hospice can provide services like emotional support and counseling for the mother; it also can help maximize the child’s quality of life following birth.

Currently there are at least three perinatal hospice programs in Arkansas.

By requiring abortionists to provide women with information about perinatal hospice, H.B. 1453 helps women choose options besides abortion.

You can call your state representative in support of H.B. 1453 at (501) 682-6211.

You can read H.B. 1453 here.

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More Pro-Life Legislation Filed in Arkansas

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Sen. Gary Stubblefield (R – Branch)

Today Sen. Gary Stubblefield (R – Branch) and Rep. Spencer Hawks (R – Conway) filed S.B. 278 amending Arkansas’ requirements for abortion facilities and making improvements to the Born-Alive Infant Protection Act and the Woman’s Right to Know Act.

The bill contains several regulations for abortion clinics.

It requires abortion clinics to maintain a twenty-four-hour telephone line women can call if they experience complications from abortion. It also says abortion facilities must be located within 30 miles of a hospital with gynecological or surgical services, and it requires abortion facilities to adopt written procedures for transferring women who experience complications from abortion to an acute care facility.

These requirements will protect women from dangerous abortion practices.

The bill also makes important improvements to two of Arkansas’ existing pro-life laws: The Woman’s Right to Know Act and the Born Alive Infant Protection Act.

Currently, Arkansas law protects babies from being killed or left to die if they survive an abortion.

S.B. 278 requires doctors to file reports with the state any time a baby is born alive after an abortion. These reports will help us craft better pro-life laws in the future.

Arkansas’ Woman’s Right to Know Act requires abortionists to give women all the facts about abortion first — including abortion’s risks, consequences, and alternatives. Women must be given at least 48 hours to review this information and weight their options before having an abortion.

S.B. 278 extends this reflection period from 48 hours to 72 hours.

Since 2015, more than 700 unborn lives have been saved thanks to the Woman’s Right to Know Act. By giving women more time to choose an option besides abortion, S.B. 278 could save even more lives.

This is a good, pro-life bill that Family Council supports.

You can leave a message for your senator about this bill by calling the Arkansas Senate during normal business hours at (501) 682-2902.

You can read S.B. 278 here.

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