WASHINGTON, D.C.— Late Thursday, Governor Ron DeSantis signed Florida’s The Heartbeat Act after the bill passed the House earlier in the evening in a vote of 70-40.
The law allows abortion throughout pregnancy to protect the life of the mother or in cases of reported rape, incest, medical emergency or when the child has a fatal condition, but it will protect unborn children from elective abortion after 6 weeks of pregnancy—a time at which the unborn child has a beating heart.
The vast majority of abortions are performed on healthy babies of healthy mothers who are conceived consensually, and half of these elective abortions take place after 6 weeks—after the baby has a beating heart.
“We praise pro-life Governor Ron DeSantis for signing this bill that will save countless lives,” said Carol Tobias, president of National Right to Life. “We thank the bill’s sponsors and the dedication of our Florida affiliate, Florida Right to Life, for its efforts to see this bill become law.”
The law also provides $25 million dollars for pregnancy resources and material support (diapers, formula, parenting classes, life skills, and counseling).
“The bill signing ceremony was an awesome event. We thank our pro-life governor for swiftly signing our 6-week bill into law. We thank the bill’s sponsors for their dedication and advocacy for life. It’s a great day to be a Floridian,” said Lynda Bell, president of Florida Right to Life, who attended the signing ceremony.