Mississippi governor signs heartbeat bill

Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant, a Republican, on Thursday signed a law that will protect babies from abortion once they have a detectable heartbeat, usually at about six weeks of gestation. The law says an abortionist who ends a pregnancy after a baby’s heartbeat is detected could face revocation of his or her medical license. It includes exceptions if a pregnancy endangers a woman’s life or one of her major bodily functions.

The Center for Reproductive Rights called the law “blatantly unconstitutional” and said it would sue to block it from taking effect July 1. Bryant responded on Twitter, saying, “We will all answer to the good Lord one day. I will say in this instance, ‘I fought for the lives of innocent babies, even under threat of legal action.’”

Gov. Matt Bevin of Kentucky, also a Republican, signed a heartbeat bill on March 14, but a federal judge has temporarily blocked it. Last year, a judge in Iowa halted a heartbeat bill from taking effect in that state, saying the law violated the Iowa Constitution.