Kentucky governor rejects proposed 15-week abortion ban

Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear vetoed a Republican-priority measure on Friday that would ban abortions in Kentucky after 15 weeks of pregnancy and regulate the supply of abortion pills.

The governor raised doubts about the constitutionality of the bill and criticized it for not including exceptions for pregnancies caused by illegal activities.

State lawmakers will have a chance to override the veto when they reunite next week for the final two days of this year’s 60-day legislative session. The abortion measure won overwhelming support in the GOP-dominated legislature.

A state Republican Party spokesman called the veto the latest example of the governor’s “ideological war” on conservative values. The proposal reflects the latest attempt by Kentucky lawmakers to put more restrictions and conditions on abortion since the GOP took complete control of the legislature after the 2016 election.

The proposed 15-week ban is modeled after a Mississippi law under review by the U.S. Supreme Court in a case that could dramatically limit abortion rights. The bill’s supporters say that Kentucky’s stricter ban would be inhabitation if the Mississippi law is upheld by taking the pro-active action.

Kentucky law currently bans abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy. Beshear on Friday condemned the bill for failing to exclude pregnancies caused by rape or incest. “Rape and incest are violent crimes,” the governor said in his veto message.

“Victims of these crimes should have options, not be further scarred through a process that exposes them to more harm from their rapists or that treats them like offenders themselves.” The governor said the bill would make it harder for girls under 18 to end a pregnancy without notifying both parents.

He told that a girl impregnated by her father would have to notify him of her intent to get an abortion. Beshear, a former state attorney general, also said the bill is “likely unconstitutional,” noting that the Supreme Court struck down similar laws elsewhere.

He is keen on provisions in the Kentucky bill requiring doctors performing nonsurgical procedures to maintain hospital admitting privileges in “geographical proximity” to where the procedures are performed.

“The Supreme Court has ruled such requirements unconstitutional as it makes it impossible for women, including a child who is a victim of rape or incest, to obtain a procedure in certain areas of the state,” the governor told.

Rivals of the Kentucky bill say its restrictions are so difficult that no abortion clinic could comply. The state Republican Party sharply criticized Beshear for the veto. It will likely surface as an issue again next year when the governor runs for a second term in Republican-trending Kentucky.

On Friday, state GOP spokesperson Sean Southard said “the latest action in his ideological war on the conservative values held by Kentuckians.” Abortion rights supporters defended the governor’s action.

Jackie McGranahan, the policy strategist for the American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky, said the bill aims to “shame and ostracize patients” and “push a safe and effective method of abortion care out of reach.”