72-Hour Wait for Abortions in North Carolina

Because of North Carolina’s soon-to-be law that requires women to wait 72 hours before killing their children, some of these women might reflect on an otherwise impulsive decision and carry their babies to term.

The Charlotte Observer reported that Gov. Pat McCrory intends to sign the bill into law after the legislature passed it by a vote of 71 to 43. An excerpt:

[McCrory] said the bill includes “some very positive progress” that will “protect women’s health.”

Opponents of the bill say McCrory should honor a pledge he made during his 2012 campaign. During a debate, he was asked what “further restrictions on abortions” he’d be willing to sign. His one-word answer was “none.”

In 2013, McCrory signed a bill that added new regulations for clinics and limited insurance coverage for government employees seeking abortions. At the time, he said that bill didn’t violate his campaign promise.

Planned Parenthood, which advocates for women’s rights to choose an abortion, had said it would deliver petitions to McCrory’s office Thursday with 16,000 signatures opposed to the latest bill.

The new law would also raise the standard of care in abortion mills. Doctors who kill unborn babies in the state have to be board-certified or “certifiable in obstetrics and gynecology.” Other changes include barring anyone under 18 from working in such a place.

Photo credit: Frank Pavone