”Born Alive” Abortion Bill Passes Wyoming Senate
A bill that would mandate that ''appropriate medical measures" be taken to save the life of any baby surviving an attempted abortion passed the Wyoming Senate on Friday 26-4 and now will move on to the state House of Representatives.
You can read Senate File 34 here.
It's sponsored by Senator(s) Steinmetz, Biteman, Boner, Dockstader, Hutchings and Kinskey and Representative(s) Flitner, Gray, Haroldson, Jennings, Neiman, Ottman, Rodriguez-Williams, Romero-Martinez and Wilson.
The same bill passed both houses of the Wyoming Legislature in 2020 but was vetoed by Governor Mark Gordon. In his veto message last year, the governor said he was pro-life, but he said the bill was already covered by existing state law. Abortions are already illegal in Wyoming after the age of viability for the fetus, which is about 23 weeks. That means that any abortion in which a baby survived in Wyoming would already be illegal unless it was an emergency procedure to save the life of the mother.
Opponents have also argued that the state should not be involved in abortion decisions, which they argue are the responsibility of a woman and her doctor. But supporters of the Born Alive bill argue that it is important to prevent laws such as those on the books in Virginia and New York that allow abortions through an entire pregnancy. They also say the bill sends an important message about the sanctity of life. Senate File 34 now moves on to the Wyoming House of Representatives.
The no votes in Friday's Senate vote were Senators Case, Gireau, Pappas and Rothfus, The other 26 members of the body all voted for the measure.