Mississippi passes law that bans abortion after 15 weeks

JACKSON, Miss. — Mississippi lawmakers on Thursday passed what would be the nation’s most restrictive abortion law, making the procedure illegal in most cases after 15 weeks of pregnancy. The state’s only abortion provider pledged to sue, and the attorney general said he expected a tough legal battle ahead.

Lawmakers in the Republican-controlled Legislature appeared not only to expect but to encourage such challenges in hopes the issue will eventually make its way to the U.S. Supreme Court.

“It seems like a pretty simple bill designed to test the viability line that the Supreme Court has drawn,” said David Forte, a law professor at Ohio’s Cleveland State University.

The House voted 75-34 in favor of the measure, and Gov. Phil Bryant said again Thursday that he would sign it. The Senate passed the measure on Tuesday.

There are two exceptions to House Bill 1510: if the fetus has a health problem that would prevent it from surviving outside the womb at full term, or if the pregnant woman’s life or a “major bodily function” is threatened by the pregnancy. Pregnancies as a result of rape and incest are not exempt.

It’s unclear if a 15-week ban will move forward elsewhere. A bill has been filed for Louisiana’s upcoming legislative session. Mississippi state Rep. Andy Gipson, a Republican, said lawmakers in Texas, Georgia and “some midwestern states” are exploring the idea. An appeals court in 2015 struck down efforts in North Dakota to ban most abortions after six weeks, when a fetus develops a detectable heartbeat, and in Arkansas after 12 weeks.