In the US state of West Virginia, a strict law was passed on Tuesday banning abortion in almost all cases. Several report that American media. The new law prohibits abortion in the first days of pregnancy. There are a number of exceptions, namely for victims of rape or incest or for pregnancies where the mother’s health is at risk.
The national right to abortion was repealed in the US at the end of June, when the US Supreme Court issued a landmark ruling Roe v. Wade from 1973 rolled back. Since then, American states have been allowed to decide for themselves which rules apply to abortion. West Virginia is the second state after Indiana to introduce a very strict anti-abortion law. Other states have tried to enact such a law, but have so far been unsuccessful.
Imprisonment
The new law prohibits abortion from a few days after conception. Only minors who have been the victim of rape or incest are allowed to have an abortion up to 14 weeks of pregnancy. In adults in the same situation, this is allowed up to eight weeks at the latest. Victims must also be able to present a police report.
An anti-aborut law was also discussed at an earlier session in July. At the time, there was disagreement about whether abortion providers should be jailed. That is now included in the law. The abortion must be performed by a doctor who is authorized to do so. Other providers may lose their work permits or thus run the risk of imprisonment.
Also read: Court puts US back in time half a century with abortion ruling