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Iowa’s ban on most abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy was signed into law Friday by Gov. Kim Reynolds, but a judge is still considering abortion advocates’ request to put the restrictions on hold.
The new legislation prohibits almost all abortions once cardiac activity can be detected, which is usually around six weeks of pregnancy and before many women know they are pregnant. That’s a dramatic shift for Iowan women; abortion had been legal up to 20 weeks of pregnancy.
The court hearing for the request to put the law on hold ended Friday with the judge saying a decision may be made next week. The legal challenge was filed Wednesday morning by the ACLU of Iowa, Planned Parenthood North Central States and the Emma Goldman Clinic.
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