Fetal heartbeat bill dropped from consideration at the Statehouse

A controversial fetal heartbeat bill is no longer under consideration at the Statehouse.

A ranking House subcommittee member confirmed to KCCI Tuesday that the bill, which would have banned abortions as soon as a fetal heartbeat is detected, is not on the legislative agenda for the remainder of the week and will not be brought up for a vote.

Planned Parenthood supporters have been hard at work trying to convince Iowa lawmakers to keep abortion safe and legal.

Before the abortion bill died, protesters lay on the Statehouse floor in silence and surrounded by hangers to represent women who have died from having abortions.

“We know women have been seeking abortions since the beginning of time, and by passing laws like the six-week ban here, all we do is risk women's health,” said Erin Davison-Rippey, with Planned Parenthood of the Heartland.

Rep. Scott Ourth, D-Indianola, said he could not vote to ban abortions as early as six weeks into a pregnancy.

“I'm simply not the one to make a blanket decision about all the myriad things that go into a pregnancy and that may force a woman and her family and doctor to face choices about how to handle these things,” Ourth said.

Those in favor of the bill said the law needs to be changed to protect unborn babies and the bill would have save 3,000 babies a year in Iowa.

“I strongly support that life begins at conception, but I also believe it’s an easy argument to make that we judge the end of the life by the end of a heartbeat,” said Rep. Stephen Holt, R-Crawford.

Although the fetal heartbeat bill will not be voted on, Anti-abortion lawmakers hope to add abortion restrictions to a fetal tissue bill up for consideration at the Statehouse.

View the original story on

.