Ohio lawmakers pass two abortion bills

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio’s Republican-led Legislature sent Gov. John Kasich a pair of new abortion restrictions Friday, including legislation banning terminations at the first detectable fetal heartbeat, something he’s vowed to veto.

After marathon lame-duck votes that lasted into the wee hours, lawmakers left open the possibility of returning to override any vetoes. However, the so-called heartbeat bill didn’t get the 60 House votes Friday that would be needed.

It was the second time in two years that lawmakers have sent the heartbeat bill to Kasich’s desk. He vetoed a similar measure in December 2016. The final legislation specifies that a transvaginal ultrasound isn’t required. That would mean detection of the heartbeat would be possible at around 10 weeks, rather than six weeks.

The other bill, approved during a Thursday session that continued overnight, bans dilation and evacuation abortions, one of the most common methods for the procedure.

After the approval of the heartbeat bill, Faith2Action President Janet Porter, who authored the legislation, urged supporters to “Pray!” and to respectfully push Kasich to change his mind.

Planned Parenthood, other abortion-rights groups and the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio condemned both bills as part of a strategy to overturn the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark Roe v. Wade decision, which effectively legalized abortion before viability.

Once he receives the bill, Kasich has 10 days, excluding Sundays, to act.