LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Gov. Andy Beshear vetoed House Bill 3 on Friday, which would ban abortions in Kentucky after 15 weeks.
It would also strictly regulate the dispensing of abortion pills by requiring women to be examined in person by a doctor before receiving the medication.
Beshear vetoed the bill on Friday, saying it contains no exceptions or exclusions for pregnancies caused by rape or incest, and is likely unconstitutional.
“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.”
Beshear, a former state attorney general, also said the bill is “likely unconstitutional,” noting that similar laws elsewhere were struck down by the Supreme Court. He pointed to 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 said.
Opponents of the Kentucky bill say its restrictions are so onerous that no abortion clinic could comply.
State lawmakers will have a chance to override the veto when they reconvene 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.
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 bill is part of a nationwide push by anti-abortion groups to limit the ability of physicians to prescribe abortion pills by telemedicine, and comes in response to the increased use of pills rather than surgery to terminate early pregnancies. About half of abortions performed in Kentucky are the result of medication procedures. Opponents called the measure another intrusion into women's medical decisions.
The proposal banning abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy is modeled after a Mississippi law under review by the U.S. Supreme Court in a case that could dramatically limit abortion rights.
The 15-week abortion ban had been a stand-alone bill but Kentucky senators inserted it into the broader measure regulating abortion. The maneuver came as GOP lawmakers push to finish work on priority bills before starting an extended break this week.
Kentucky law currently bans abortion after 20 weeks of pregnancy.
Shipment of the pills by mail would be banned under the measure. It would require an in-person visit with a doctor, rather than using telehealth, before a woman could undergo a medication abortion.
About half of all abortions performed in Kentucky are the result of medication procedures.
Beshear's designated veto period began Thursday. Lawmakers return for the final two days of General Assembly on next Wednesday and Thursdays, and can override any vetoes.
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- Kentucky legislators pass abortion, charter school, income tax bills as session winds down
- Kentucky Senate Committee aims to change process of fetal remains disposal in sweeping abortion bill
Copyright 2022 WDRB Media. The Associated Press contributed to this report. All Rights Reserved.
