Florida Senate approves six-week abortion ban, adds human trafficking exception

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (FLV) – The Florida Senate passed a six-week abortion ban, providing exceptions for rape, incest, and human trafficking.

The proposal, sponsored by Sen. Erin Grall, R-Fort Pierce, is titled the “Heartbeat Protection Act” and would still need approval from the House.

The Senate passed the bill 26-13. Grall said on the Senate floor that motherhood should be celebrated.

“There is a heartbeat. There is a life. […] It is something that should be celebrated. It is something that we should be encouraging women in this time to own the difference that they are able to make – through the children that they bring into the world,” Grall said.

Two Republicans, Sen. Alexis Calatayud, R-Miami, and Sen. Corey Simon, R-Tallahassee, voted against the bill.

Senate President Kathleen Passidomo cleared the gallery during debate after protestors continually interrupted Calatayud while she was speaking.

“I told my constituents that I would advocate for exceptions for rape, incest, and human trafficking,” Calatayud said before Passidomo paused her speech following interruptions.

While Calatayud spent several minutes applauding parts of the bill, she voted against it, citing that she told her constituents she would support Florida’s current 15-week ban.

The Senate voted to add an exception for human trafficking to the bill. Calatayud proposed the amendment.

“The Heartbeat Protection Act builds on Florida’s strong track record of protecting the most vulnerable, especially the unborn, and strengthens state efforts to promote adoption, and support families, with significant resources to benefit infants, young children, and parents, which we hope will encourage more Floridians in difficult and unplanned situations to choose life for their babies,” Passidomo said in a statement following the vote.

Sen. Lori Burman, D-Boca Raton, spoke against the bill during debate.

“We need to stop stigmatizing and shaming women for having an abortion. The vast majority of those abortions are very thought out. The women don’t have regrets. They do what they need to do to move on with their lives. This bill is cruel and inhumane to the families of Florida,” Burman said.

The proposal bans abortions after six weeks, unless the pregnancy is the result of rape, incest, human trafficking, and the fetus is not older than 15 weeks. Other exceptions include if the mother’s life is at risk.

In order to qualify for the exception for rape, incest, or human trafficking, at the time a pregnant woman schedules or arrives for her appointment to obtain the abortion, she must provide a copy of a restraining order, police report, medical record, or other court order or documentation providing evidence that she is obtaining the abortion because she is the victim of rape or incest.

If the woman is a minor, the bill requires that the physician report the incident of rape or incest to the central abuse hotline.

It clarifies the exception for fatal fetal abnormalities is available until the third trimester, rather than until viability.

The bill specifies that abortions may not be provided through telehealth and that medication intended for the use in a medical abortion may only be dispensed by a physician and may not be dispensed via the U.S. Postal Service or by any other carrier.

It will also prohibits any person, educational institution, and governmental entity from expending state funds for a person to travel to another state to receive services that are intended to support an abortion, unless such expenditure is required by federal law or there is a legitimate medical emergency.

The bill provides exceptions for when such expenditure is required by federal law, and for emergency situations.

$5 million in recurring funds will be used for the family planning program, which is implemented by the Department of Health.

Grall said the bill has four main goals: to protect innocent unborn babies who deserve the right to life, to promote healthy families, to support parents and babies by providing additional counseling and mentoring services, and to provide materials to families such as car seats, cribs, clothing, formula and diapers.

The bill also expands the Florida Pregnancy Care Network to expand eligibility for such services to women who have given birth in the past 12 months and to parents or guardians of children under the age of three for up to 12 months.

The Florida Pregnancy Care Network is a not-for-profit statewide alliance of pregnancy support organizations that provide pregnancy support and wellness services through a comprehensive system of care to women and their families.

The bill appropriates $25 million in recurring general revenue for the expanded network and specifies that contracted organizations in the network must spend at least 85% of the funds received on providing services and maintaining a hotline.

The bill adds new services and assistance which the network is required to provide, including counseling, mentoring, educational materials, and classes as well as material assistance including clothing, car seats, cribs formula, and diapers.

The legislation also requires that the Department of Health report to the governor and the Legislature annually on the types, amount, and costs of services provided as well as demographic information on persons who receive such services.

The provisions of the bill, other than the expansion of the pregnancy support network and the appropriations, which are effective upon becoming law, are effective 30 days after one of several events occurs.

These events include a Florida Supreme court ruling overturning one of several other related cases, a Florida Supreme court ruling stating that the privacy clause in the Florida Constitution does not protect the right to abortion, or an amendment to the Florida Constitution which provides the same.

A similar bill is working through the House, co-sponsored by Rep. Jenna Persons-Mulicka, R-Fort Myers, and Rep. Jennifer Canady, R-Lakeland.