TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - The most common type of second-trimester abortion is ready for a final vote in the Florida House of Representatives.
The measure would impose new restrictions on doctors performing dilation-and-evacuation abortions.
The procedure, known by opponents as a dismemberment abortion, would be prohibited unless the heart of a fetus is stopped first, either by the injection of a drug or by severing the umbilical cord.
The bill would allow an exception when a woman's life is in danger and if no other medical procedures would suffice.
Doctors who violate the law could be charged with a third-degree felony, which carries a prison sentence of up to five years and fines up to $5,000.
Republican State Rep. Erin Grall is the bill's sponsor.
