Mississippi Passes 15 Week Abortion Ban

American Family Association (AFA) invites you to sign the petition thanking Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves (R), Speaker Philip Gunn (R-Hinds, Madison), and those members of the Mississippi House of Representatives and Senate who helped pass the Gestational Age Act banning abortions after 15 weeks. 

The Mississippi legislature recently passed a bill banning abortion of babies after 15 weeks, and Gov. Phil Bryant (R-MS) is expected to sign the bill into law. Current Mississippi law bans abortions after 20 weeks. The 15-week abortion ban would make Mississippi the most protective state for both the unborn and the baby's mother. 

The bill originated in the MS House of Representatives where it passed 79-31 before advancing to the Senate where it passed 35-14. 

Sign the petition thanking Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves (R), Speaker Philip Gunn (R-Hinds, Madison), and those members of the Mississippi House of Representatives and Senate who helped pass the Gestational Age Act banning abortions after 15 weeks. 

Rep. Becky Currie (R-Copiah, Lawrence, Lincoln) is the bill's principal author who also had the support of several co-authors including Rep. Andy Gipson (R- Rankin, Simpson). When asked if the bill went far enough, Rep. Gipson said, "I believe that life begins at conception and I believe it goes until the Lord calls us home." Yet he strongly supports the bill because it will save the lives of more babies and will protect the life and health of more women. 

Mississippi State Senator Angela Burks Hill (R-Marion, Pearl River) said, "The state has a compelling interest to also protect the health of the mother. As you get into the second-term abortions, the chances of complication totally increase by like 2,100 percent when you start doing those second-trimester abortions." 

The bill notes: 

• "An unborn human being begins to move about in the womb at approximately eight (8) weeks' gestation."
• "At nine (9) weeks' gestation, all basic physiological functions are present. Teeth and eyes are present, as well as external genitalia."
• "An unborn human being's vital organs begin to function at ten (10) weeks' gestation. Hair, fingernails, and toenails also begin to form."
• "At eleven (11) weeks' gestation, an unborn human being's diaphragm is developing, and he or she may even hiccup. He or she is beginning to move about freely in the womb."
• "At twelve (12) weeks' gestation, an unborn human being can open and close his or her fingers, starts to make sucking motions, and senses stimulation from the world outside the womb."

Mississippi would lead the nation, being the first state to enact a 15-week abortion ban protecting both unborn children and the life and health of women. 

Again, we invite you to sign the petition thanking Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves (R), Speaker Philip Gunn (R-Hinds, Madison), and those members of the Mississippi House of Representatives and Senate who helped pass the Gestational Age Act banning abortions after 15 weeks.