Governor. Kevin Stitt has signed a bill, HB 4327, into law, that makes it a criminal offence to perform an abortion after six weeks of pregnancy.
Under the new law, abortions are only permitted if there is a medical emergency or if the pregnancy was a result of rape, sexual assault or incest and reported to law enforcement.
“I promised Oklahomans that as Governor I would sign every piece of pro-life legislation that came across my desk and I am proud to keep that promise today. From the moment life begins at conception is when we have a responsibility as human beings to do everything we can to protect that baby’s life and the life of the mother. If other states want to pass different laws, that is their right, but in Oklahoma, we will always stand up for life,” said the Governor.
Though the Bill considers pregnancy to begin at fertilization, and not implantation, the Bill does not restrict the use of forms of contraception that prevent a fertilized egg from implanting in a uterus. According to the Bill, abortion does not include the use, prescription, administration, procuring, or selling of Plan B, morning-after pills, or any other type of contraception or emergency contraception.
However, abortion rights advocates have warned that the Oklahoma ban would eliminate access to abortion across the South, and be devastating for not only Oklahomans but also Texans who seek abortion care in the State and have vowed to mount a legal challenge to the law.
“This is where States have been heading for decades. A total or really a total abortion ban. This signals to other States that they, too, can ban abortion,” said Elizabeth Nash, an analyst for the Guttmacher Institute, which supports abortion rights.
