This week, the Senate Education and Health Committee passed SB484, legislation introduced by Senator Jill Holtzman Vogel to require abortion providers to allow a woman the opportunity to see an ultrasound image of her pregnancy or hear the fetal heartbeat. The law further requires that the sonogram be provided 24 hours before an abortion, unless the woman has traveled 100 miles to receive the abortion, in which case the interval before the abortion can be performed can be reduced to two hours.
When I worked for a state senator, we called the Senate Ed & Health Committee the “committee of death” because, although then committee chairman Russ Potts was nominally Republican, this is where pro-life bills were sent to die.
Now, under Senator Steve Martin’s leadership, this bill narrowly passed through committee. It is nearly certain to become law. I fully expect that it will pass in the Senate, sail through the House and be signed by Governor McDonnell.
Medically, the bill serves to codify medical best practices and ensure that abortion providers accurately determine fetal age prior to performing the abortion procedure. This is important, since Virginia law requires that later term abortions be performed in the hospital environment.
However, this bill does something more: it ensures that not only does a woman receive a sonogram, but that she has the opportunity to view it (under the law, she is not required to view it, which may aide the measure in surviving a likely judicial challenge). A reflection period following the sonogram and before the procedure also promotes truly informed consent.
National statistics indicate that when women see the sonogram of their unborn child, they are much more likely to choose to carry their pregnancy to term. According to some studies, women who are unaware of the level of development of their child before an abortion, or who felt pressured or coerced into abortion are also more likely to experience negative psychological after effects following an abortion.
This measure is a victory for women’s health because it requires medical professionals to respect women’s choices to view their sonogram and render more fully informed consent. And this measure is a victory for all life-affirming people, because when women are more informed about fetal development and their pregnancy options, they are more likely to choose life.
Note: similar legislation sponsored by Ralph Smith was combined with Vogel’s bill in committee.
