Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards signed multiple pro-life bills into law in recent weeks. One bill mandates that women seeking chemical abortion be informed that it may be possible to save their child if they experience regret and change their mind about the abortion after taking the first abortion pill. Other legislation concerns parental consent, hospital reporting requirements, baby boxes and providing sale tax relief in support of certain material needs for families.
Edwards, a Democrat, announced July 2 that he had signed HB 578, the Abortion Pill Reversal Disclosure Act, the National Right to Life Committee reports.
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HB 578 requires that when a physician or their agent administers mifepristone (the first abortion pill in the chemical abortion process) to a pregnant woman, he or she must provide a disclosure statement informing the pregnant mom that if after taking the first abortion pill she regrets the abortion, she should consult a physician or healthcare provider immediately to determine if there are options available to help sustain her pregnancy.
via National Right to Life Committee
The disclosure statement can be stapled to the bag, envelope, or other package that contains misoprostol (the second abortion pill) for the pregnant woman to take at home or attached to her discharge instructions if the prescription for misoprostol is sent directly to a pharmacy.
More than 2,000 lives and counting have been saved via abortion pill reversal, according to the Abortion Pill Rescue® Network (APRN), managed by Heartbeat International.
Louisiana’s APR informed consent legislation follows a similar law in Indiana having been temporarily blocked by a federal judge.
The Louisiana governor also signed HB 357, mandating that any minor who wants an abortion without a parent’s permission must file an appeal through the court.
HB 218 authorizes "installation and use of newborn safety devices at certain infant relinquishment sites designated in the Safe Haven Law."
Edwards also signed HB 423, establishing reporting requirements for hospitals that perform abortions.
The bill stipulates that the state health department will gather more information from women seeking an abortion, while the attorney general and the Department of Children and Family Services will collect reporting information for minors who undergo abortion ad are under age of 13. Additionally, hospitals will be required to report all cases of abortion complications the Louisiana health department.
HB 7 abolishes state sales tax on feminine hygiene products and diapers to benefit families.
HB 7 went into effect immediately upon Edwards signing the law, Live Action reports, and the others are set to go into effect August 1.
Editor's note: Heartbeat International manages the Abortion Pill Rescue® Network and Pregnancy Help News. This article has been updated with the governor's political affiliation.
