Tennessee lawmakers are dredging up an old 'fetal heartbeat' bill with the hope of it reaching the Supreme Court
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Tennessee might join the growing number of GOP-led states with harsh abortion bans.
The state tried and failed earlier this year to pass a ban on abortions after six weeks of pregnancy. But now, it's seeking to pass an even more restrictive bill, with state Senate Judiciary Committee testimonies beginning Monday over whether to enact a ban on abortions from the time a woman learns she is pregnant, CBS News reports.
Tennessee's Republican-dominated House passed its so-called "fetal heartbeat" bill earlier this year, but it lost traction in the state Senate as conservatives debated how to enact an abortion ban. The bill has since been revamped to effectively be a total ban on abortions, though it's biggest goal isn't to end abortion procedures in the state. As one state senator told CBS News, the Senate wants to see court challenges to the bill and eventually get it in front of the Supreme Court to disrupt previous rulings protecting abortion procedures.
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While Tennessee failed, several other states did pass fetal heartbeat bills earlier this year, including Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Ohio. The bill would ban abortions after a fetus's heartbeat can be detected, typically around six weeks. They were all explicit attempts to bring the Roe v. Wade decision back in front of the Supreme Court.
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Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.
