Two Republicans have introduced a bill in Ohio’s House of Representatives that would ban all abortions statewide.
While the legislation is unlikely to pass, sponsors hope it will “get the word out that life does begin at conception and move the debate in that direction,” said one of its two sponsors, state representative Ron Hood.
The bill defines an “unborn human” as a person under Ohio’s criminal code.
The move comes one day after Mississipi’s governor signed one of the most restrictive abortion laws in the nation, banning the procedure after 15 weeks of pregnancy with very few exceptions.
Hood’s co-sponsor, state representative Nino Vitale, called the proposed Ohio law a “save them both” bill and said many women who conceive in rape later regret their abortions.
“Life isn’t always giving us things by our choice and I don’t want to put a woman through a second trauma after she’s been through such an awful first one,” Vitale said.
Eighteen additional House Republicans put their names on the legislation.
The Ohio affiliate of the pro-abortion group NARAL came out swinging against the bill.
“Anti-choice extremists from the Ohio Statehouse to the White House are lining up their dominoes to topple Roe v. Wade and punish those who seek or provide abortion care,” a statement from NARAL Pro-Choice Ohio executive director Kellie Copeland read.
The bill would allow criminal charges to be brought against a woman who tries to take the life of her unborn child, an idea that even many pro-lifers see as extreme.
Ohio has been working to pass more abortion restrictions for years. In December, Republican governor John Kasich (R) signed a bill banning the abortion of unborn children with Down syndrome. A federal judge ruled that measure unconstitutional earlier this month.