State Sen. Sandra O’Brien, a Republican who represents Trumbull County, is sponsoring a bill to ban all abortions, except to save the mother’s life, that would take effect immediately if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade.

“The Human Life Protection Act is a vital step forward in ensuring that the most vulnerable members of our society are protected,” said O’Brien, R-Knox, whose district includes all of Trumbull and Ashtabula counties and a portion of Geauga County. “It’s time to imagine an Ohio without abortion, one where every precious human life is cherished and where no woman is victimized by the profound loss of abortion.”

The proposal also would allow doctors who perform abortions to be charged with felonies and for wrongful death civil lawsuits to be filed against physicians or anyone who performs an abortion.

Women who have abortions would have immunity against prosecution under the proposal.

The bill only would allow abortions to save the life of the mother. It doesn’t have any other exemptions including rape or incest.

The legislation, backed by Ohio Right to Life, was introduced in the Ohio House in 2020, but never came to the floor for a vote.

Ten other states currently have similar legislation, known as a “trigger law” as it would ban abortions if the high court overturns the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that ruled it constitutional for women to have the right to terminate their pregnancies without excessive government restrictions.

If the Supreme Court overturns the ruling, the decision on abortions would be up to each state.

O’Brien is sponsoring the bill with state Sen. Kristina Roegner, R-Hudson.

“The primary purpose of government is to protect our rights from being infringed upon by others with the first and foremost of those being the right to life,” O’Brien said. “This bill will ensure that the right to life of unborn individuals is protected here in Ohio.”

Republicans have a super majority in the Ohio House and Senate and could pass this bill if they choose. The Republican legislature has passed other bills the past few years to restrict abortions.

Also, Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, opposes abortions.

Lauren Blauvelt-Copelin, Planned Parenthood Advocates of Ohio’s vice president of government affairs and public advocacy, called O’Brien and Roegner “anti-abortion extremists.”

The proposal, she said, “is the latest egregious attack on abortion access from leaders in the Ohio General Assembly who are only focused on eliminating legal access to abortion, to the neglect of everything else including the pandemic. Ohioans deserve better. Ohioans deserve lawmakers who are focused on making their lives better, not restricting their access to care.”

Kellie Copeland, NARAL Pro-Choice Ohio’s executive director, said: “Ohioans need and deserve access to safe and affordable abortion care in their local communities. They don’t need anti-abortion politicians interfering with their reproductive health care decisions. Abortion is safe and legal in Ohio. NARAL Pro-Choice Ohio and our partners are working every day to keep it that way.”

But Mike Gonidakis, president of Ohio Right to Life, said the state is “pro-life and it is time for us to take this powerful and life-affirming step forward to save unborn babies. For the first time since abortion was legalized, we have a pro-life majority on the Supreme Court. Roe v. Wade hangs by a thread. Ohio must be prepared for what comes next. Our time is now.”

Abortions in Ohio are legal until 20 weeks into a pregnancy. After that, they can only be done if the mother’s life is in danger.

Various anti-abortion laws in Ohio have resulted in a reduced number of abortion clinics in the state — nine with only six performing surgical abortions. There were 17 facilities in 2014.

DeWine in April 2019 signed the Heartbeat Bill that would criminalize abortions after a fetal heartbeat can be detected, which usually is about six weeks into a pregnancy. But the bill is being challenged in federal court and hasn’t taken effect. Other states have also passed heartbeat bills that have failed to be approved by federal courts.

dskolnick@tribtoday.com