Bill to establish 'fetal personhood' filed in Florida Legislature
A bill filed in the Senate last week could potentially establish "fetal personhood."
It's the same bill one anti-abortion advocate in the Florida Senate tried to pass last year, but it was blocked and died in Senate Rules after concerns it would interfere with legal access to abortion and in-vitro fertilization.
"Civil Liability for the Wrongful Death of an Unborn Child" (SB 1284) would give parents the ability to sue for damages for the wrongful death of an unborn child, defines 'unborn child' as 'a member of the species Homo sapiens, at any stage of development, who is carried in the womb.'
"Fetal personhood" refers to the belief that a fetus should be recognized as a legal and moral person with rights, often including the right to life, from the moment of conception.
The bill would let a parent of an unborn child recover damages for 'pain and suffering' from a person who is responsible for the unborn child's death. Currently, Florida law only states 'minor child.'
It's the exact same version of the bill Sen. Erin Grall, R-Fort Pierce, filed last year.
As previously reported, Planned Parenthood, the National Organization for Women and Equality Florida at the time all spoke against the bill and warned of a chilling effect on doctors and abortion providers who would be afraid of being sued for providing health care.
Last year, Grall said the bill created 'parity,' as the definition for 'unborn child' is also used in Florida law for criminal penalties, and that doctors who provided abortions could not be sued if this bill became law.
Grall also sponsored what is now the state's six-week abortion ban.
While abortion advocates tried to pass a ballot measure last fall to enshrine abortion up to viability in the Florida Constitution, it failed with 57% of the vote. In Florida, a constitutional amendment needs 60% of the vote to pass.
From last year: 'Temporary loss': Abortion amendment backers vow to fight on as DeSantis declares victory
Ana Goñi-Lessan, state watchdog reporter for the USA TODAY Network – Florida, can be reached at agonilessan@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Florida lawmakers may take up 'fetal personhood' bill this session
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