Associated Press: Okla. lawmakers approve several abortion bills
By Sean Murphy
“The Oklahoma Senate approved several bills Monday that opponents say would make it more difficult or uncomfortable for women to get abortions, including one that would require women seeking the procedures early in their pregnancies to undergo an invasive form of ultrasound.
The five bills, some of which will go to Gov. Brad Henry for consideration and others which will return to the House, were overwhelmingly approved by the Republican-controlled Senate. If given final approval, the bills would give Oklahoma some of the most restrictive laws of any state, an abortion rights group says.
The reporting requirements and the ultrasound bill are among the strictest anti-abortion measures in the country, said Jennifer Mondino, an attorney for the New York-based Center for Reproductive Rights, which successfully challenged abortion-related bills passed by the Oklahoma Legislature in 2008 and 2009.
Seven of the anti-abortion bills passed by the Legislature so far this year were included previously in larger bills struck down in separate court cases for violating a state requirement that bills deal with only one subject.
‘We’re very disappointed that the Legislature has decided to pass these bills and open themselves up to possible legal challenges in the future,’ Mondino said. ‘We’ve been monitoring the bills, and it’s definitely a significant possibility we’ll be challenging some or even all the bills.’”
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