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AJC.com > Legislature > Blog > Archives > 2007 > February > 15 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USAbortion bill clears Senate committee
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
A bill that would require any pregnant woman who is seeking an abortion in Georgia to undergo an ultrasound and then choose whether to view the images passed a Senate committee Thursday.
The Senate Health and Human Sciences Committee, chaired by Sen. Don Thomas (R-Dalton), voted 8 to 5 for Senate Bill 66. Thomas shut down debate despite the fact that some lawmakers raised major concerns about the bill’s language and several people signed up to testify.
Nancy Schaefer (R-Turnersville), the bill’s sponsor, opened the hearing by explaining that she believed her proposal would help women make a sound decision about going through with an abortion.
“This act will help women in Georgia have the accurate information they desire to make an informed decision about their pregnancy,” Schaefer said.
Sen. Preston Smith (R-Rome) proposed an amendment to the bill that exempts victims of rape and incest from the sonogram requirement.
“I think compassion argues that a person who has been the victim of rape or incest be exempt,” Smith said.
His amendment passed, but at least three senators voted against it: Sen. David Shafer (R-Duluth), Sen. Don Balfour (R-Snellville), and Sen. Judson Hill (R-Marietta).
Schaefer proposed a similar measure last year, which passed the Senate but died in the House. SB 66 is Georgia Right to Life’s number one legislative priority this year. Not surprisingly, abortion-rights groups oppose the measure.
However, the committee did not hear much testimony from either side on the nuances of the bill. Thomas, in a hurry to get to the funeral of U.S. Rep. Charlie Norwood, limited testimony to three minutes from one person for the bill, and one person against the bill.
Anne Feldman, the mother of adopted twin girls born in 2004, testified that her daughters are alive now because their birth mother underwent a sonogram before seeking an abortion. The sonogram changed the birth mother’s mind about terminating her pregnancy.
Carrie Cwiak, an Emory University physician who represents the Georgia Obstetrical and Gynecological Society, argued against the bill, saying it mandates a medically unnecessary procedure. She also raised concerns about the cost implications of the bill for women seeking an abortion.
Several lawmakers, including Sen. Nan Orrock (D-Atlanta), Sen. Gloria Butler (D-Stone Mountain), and Sen. Steve Henson (D-Tucker) tried to clarify the bill’s language and offer additional amendments. They extended the length of the meeting to just over an hour despite Thomas’s repeated efforts to move quickly.
At one point, a frustrated Thomas exclaimed, “I have a plane to catch.”
Henson asked the committee to approve an amendment that would make the sonogram procedure optional for pregnant women seeking an abortion. He argued that it was not logical to make women have the procedure if they would decline the opportunity to view the images anyway. Last year, a House committee amended Schaefer’s bill to include such language against the recommendation of Georgia Right to Life.
Henson’s amendment failed, as did a suggestion by Butler to ensure that women be referred only to “licensed” medical facilities for the ultrasound.
Senate Bill 66 heads to the Senate Rules committee next.
Permalink | Comments (10) | Categories: Miscellaneous
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By Jerry
February 15, 2007 3:22 PM | Link to this
I am absolutely convinced that in a red state anyone who says he or she is a born again Christian and promises to cut taxes and erect barriers for gays will certainly get elected. Under the gold dome the clowns are having field day. Befor you decide to have this tooth pulled I want you to go out and look at people who had their teeth pulled. I bet you will change your mind. North Carolina, you have my permission to run circles around Georgia any time you so desire. Georgians seem to think that they are the best thing south of the Mason Dixie. I’ve said it before and I will say it againg while we here in Georgia are devising silly legislation NC is moving ahead of us. One day we will wake up and say, “Gee when did NC accomplished all of this?”
By Landon
February 16, 2007 10:55 AM | Link to this
Jerry:
There are at least four interstates that will take you out of Georgia. If they don’t work for you, Delta is ready when you are.
By petunia
February 16, 2007 11:12 AM | Link to this
LOL! Nothing like forcing un-needed medical procedures on the poor stupid women. After all, we’re obviously too ignorant to make our own healthcare decisions so the Legislature must step in and demand that our doctors cede to them the power to force this procedure onto any woman who comes in wanting to get a legal abortion. Figures. Why do Republicans have so much contempt for the intelligence of women? Even the Republican women act like this…
By George
February 16, 2007 11:28 AM | Link to this
What an embarrassment!! Schaefer is a fool!!!! I live in the district and I find this shameful. She has nothing else to talk about. She is a “one trick poney” who is anything but a Christian!! No compassion from Nancy!!
By Exador
February 16, 2007 11:52 AM | Link to this
Between this and his handling of the alcohol-on-Sunday bill, David Shafer has succeeded in convincing me to vote for a democrat for the first time.
By Joe
February 19, 2007 2:35 PM | Link to this
To Jerry,
Never forget Delta is ready when you are. I bet if you leave Georgia and move to NC it will raise the IQ of both states.
By Jennie
February 20, 2007 9:37 AM | Link to this
So, let me get this straight. If I CHOOSE a medical procedure like abortion, I am forced to undergo a medical procedure that is NOT my choice to satisfy some bible-thumping Republican who can’t get the separation of church and state into his head? LIke I am going to change my mind?
You people wonder why people think you’re all stupid down here. Let’s see, I can’t buy beer on Sunday, but I can carry a concealed weapon and need a Christian Coalition-mandated ultrasound before an abortion?Brilliant.
The lack of separation of church and state in Georgia is unconstitutional and unjust. I am tired of the right- wing christian agenda being pushed on all of us and this is another example. If you don’t agree with abortion, DON’T HAVE ONE but keep your laws off of my body.
By the way, I AM pregnant and it is by CHOICE.
By Eldon
February 20, 2007 10:39 AM | Link to this
Would this be an unfunded mandate that local pols like to cry that the feds are forcing upon them?
By buck
February 20, 2007 1:33 PM | Link to this
So, is the state of GA going to get stuck with the bill? Can you force someone to pay for an mandated, yet unnecessary, medical procedure?
By Jodi
February 22, 2007 2:27 PM | Link to this
I personally know of 3 females who have had an abortion. One was required to at 16 years old, if she wanted to continue living in her parents home. Maybe, if her mom had seen an image of her grandchild she wouldn’t have made a decision that has scarred my friend these last 16 years. Another was 18 when she had hers. She thought she was making the right decision for herself and the baby. 14 years later, she still regrets it and can’t bring herself to have a child because she doesn’t think she deserves one now. The last female that I know was 24 and she hasn’t had one regret. She feels very strongly she made the right decision and hasn’t thought twice about it since. Knowing her as I do, I have no doubt, that if she had a sonogram and saw the image, she would have still had the abortion without a qualm. Maybe the sonograms won’t make a difference but maybe they will. If I know 2 women who live with heartache over the choice they made, how many are out there that I don’t know? This isn’t about abortion being wrong. Who’s to say whether it is or not? It’s not about women being too stupid to make their own decisions. We are much smarter than most men. It’s not about God. It’s about making a decision that you can’t change, that you will remember every moment for the rest of your life. Thinking back on some of the decisions I’ve made as a teenager and in my twenties, I know how easy it is to make a decision you’re sure of, only to decide later that you were wrong. So, what’s wrong with making women take a second thought before doing something they might never get over?!