Indiana’s anti-abortion laws practically make decisions for expecting women

March was a month of struggles for the women of Indiana as politicians made efforts to make the term “pro-choice” irrelevant in the state. In addition to fighting against conservatives in the Supreme Court for the right to continue receiving contraceptive coverage through employer benefits, women lost several reproductive rights when Governor Mike Pence signed House Bill 1337.

The bill, which was passed on March 24th, has not only been deemed as one of the most restrictive bills in the United States but it has made Indiana the second to ban abortion for genetic abnormalities and the latest to attempt further restrictions on fetal tissue research. The worst part about this bill is that it puts women at risk of humiliation and punishment for reasons based on myth and Pence’s personal values.

Before even signing the bill (which was behind closed doors and without a public signing ceremony, may I add) Pence expressed to Indiana Public Media that although he would “give it very careful and thoughtful consideration in the days ahead,” but that, “I do bring my belief in the sanctity of life to that and that will inform the way that I evaluate that, ultimately.”

His belief has led to the requirement that women undergo an ultrasound and listen to the heartbeat 18 hours before receiving an abortion. If that isn’t enough to break a woman’s heart, let’s add requiring offering the remains to the child aborted or miscarried (to the state the terms aborted or miscarried are interchangeable, but in this context a child aborted is the woman’s decision and miscarried is an unplanned loss during pregnancy) and making the woman responsible for the burial or cremation of the remains, even if it resembles heavy period blood. What consideration has been made on the woman’s feelings and sanity?

These new restrictions not only hurt women emotionally but create a financial burden. The waiting period requires more trips than necessary which in turn requires more gas money and time away from work. With the lack of clinics around, trips for some women may require overnight stays at hotels. The price of all that in addition to the costs of the disposition of the remains may be out of the price range for lower class women.

The bill also violates a woman’s constitutional right to her choice of reproduction. While the  ban on abortions based on gender and race seem justifiable, Pence’s decisions have been solely based on myth. There has been no evidence that has shown that abortions due to reasoning of gender or race are or have been an issue, but it has created stereotypes for women of lower class and ethnic backgrounds.

The most restricting portion of the bill derives from situations that are common – fetus anomaly leading to disability. Disabilities are not restricted to children with genetic disorders like Down Syndrome, but are extended to fetuses that have been diagnosed with disabilities that will not allow them to live even minutes beyond birth. Such requirements have even members of the Republican party against the bill.

The legal punishments corner both mother and doctor. While women who are found guilty for having an abortion, under any of the new unlawful circumstances, can receive varying degrees of legal punishments, the state will hold doctors liable for performing abortions to women with unlawful motivations.

If there are no changes to the bill, it is safe to say that Indiana will only know the term Pro-life.