Florida House Backs Abortion Business Regulations
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by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
April 13, 2005
Tallahasee, FL (LifeNews.com) — The Florida state House has approved a measure that would put more stringent regulations in place for the state’s abortion businesses. Backers of the bill say it would ensure women’s health and safety and close abortion facilities that don’t comply with the law.
The measure would ensure that abortion businesses in the state meet the same health and safety requirements as any legitimate surgical center. Florida House lawmakers approved HB 1041 on a 89-27 vote.
"We’re after abortion clinics that do a horrible job, that’s who we’re after," Rep. Aaron Bean, a Republican and the bill sponsor, said during the vote.
A companion measure, SB 1862, has received approval in one Senate committee and is waiting for a second to sign off on it and send it to the Senate floor.
Abortion facilities strongly oppose the Women’s Health and Safety Act and pro-abortion lawmakers tried to strip language from the bill discussing the various risks and complications resulting from an abortion.
Florida House and Senate committees have also approved legislation to require abortion facilities to tell parents of a teenager girl when their daughter is considering an abortion.
The Florida Senate Health Care Committee on Wednesday approved SB 1908 on an 8-2 vote. The measure requires notification 48 hours prior to performing the abortion.
Notification laws in other states have been credited with reducing abortions on teenagers by as much as 30 percent.
Sen. Paula Dockery, a Republican, is the sponsor of the notification bill.
Florida voters approved a constitutional amendment to allow parental notification by a 65-35 percent margin on the November ballot. The vote came in response to two Florida Supreme Court rulings declaring previous statutes unconstitutional.
Almost 90,000 abortions were performed in Florida in 2003.
Related web sites:
Florida state Senate – https://www.flsenate.gov
Florida Right to Life – https://www.frtl.org
