NEB. PASSES LIMITS ON ABORTION, TRANS CARE

Nebraska lawmakers voted Friday to restrict access to abortion and medical care for transgender youth, after weeks of vociferous debate on two issues that have divided state legislators across the country this year.

Conservative legislators bundled provisions restricting access to both forms of medical treatment into a single bill in the final days of the legislative session.

The merger was done for practical reasons in Nebraska’s capital: As a result of persistent filibustering by Democrats, proponents of limits on abortion and transgender care were running out of time to push the issues through as standalone laws before the session ended.

The blended bill, known as LB 574, passed by a 33-15 vote. It includes looser restrictions than the original provisions that Republicans sought to pass. Republicans saw it as a compromise, while Democrats were furious about what they saw as a last-minute scramble to revive restrictions on abortion. Minutes after the vote, opponents of the bill gathered outside the chamber and chanted “shame!” according to Nebraska Public Media News.

Nebraska Republicans initially had sought to ban most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, but that measure failed, and the amended proposal set the limit at 12 weeks. The bill includes exceptions for rape, incest and medical emergencies.

An earlier bill on medical treatment for transgender people would have barred minors from receiving puberty blockers, hormone therapy and surgeries. But Republicans scaled back their goal to ensure that they would have enough support.

The proposal approved Friday bans surgeries and calls on the state’s chief medical officer to establish criteria under which puberty blockers and hormone therapy may be administered to people younger than 19.

Gov. Jim Pillen, a Republican, celebrated the vote. “All children deserve a chance to grow and live happy, fruitful lives,” he said in a statement. “This includes pre-born boys and girls, and it includes children struggling with their gender identity.”

Democrats expressed concern that the chief medical officer, who was appointed by the governor, would establish onerous requirements to access puberty blockers and hormones.