Virginia Legislature Moves Abortion-Ultrasound Bills to House Floor for Vote 
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by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
January 29, 2008
Richmond, VA (LifeNews.com) — A State House panel in Virginia has approved two bills that would give women contemplating an abortion a chance to see an ultrasound of the unborn child beforehand. One bill provides women the ultrasound image and another allows them the chance to give the baby anesthesia before the abortion.
Pro-life groups hope the bills will give women more information on the development of their unborn baby that they don’t normally receive from abortion centers.
The House Courts of Justice Committee backed the bills on an 18-4 vote and now they are headed to the full House, which is expected to approve them.
Delegate Ben Cline, a Republican, is behind House Bill 1315, which provides the option to view the ultrasound and Delegate Kathy Byron, also a Republican, is the sponsor of the anesthesia measure.
Political observers say the bills may have a tough time in the Senate where Democrats control the chamber and pro-abortion lawmakers may not let them come up for a vote.
Last week, the Virginia House of Delegates approved a bill that makes abortion facilities meet the same health standards as legitimate surgical centers.
The House voted 60-37 for the measure, which requires abortion centers to receive regular inspections from the state health department and to comply with various medical requirements.
The Family Foundation, Virginia Society for Human Life and the Virginia Catholic Conference are working in conjunction to support the measure and other pro-life bills.
Related web sites:
Virginia state legislature – https://legis.state.va.us
Virginia Family Foundation – https://www.familyfoundation.org
Virginia Society for Human Life – https://www.vshl.org
Virginia Catholic Conference – https://www.vacatholic.org
