Texas’ “Fetal Heartbeat Bill” passes judicial scrutiny

The nation's highest court has allowed a Texas law banning most abortions, to remain in effect, marking a turning point for abortion opponents who have been fighting to implement stronger restrict

The nation's highest court has allowed a Texas law banning most abortions, to remain in effect, marking a turning point for abortion opponents who have been fighting to implement stronger restrictions for nearly a decade. The Texas law, pegged a “fetal heartbeat bill,” bans abortions at the point of the “first detectable heartbeat,” which could happen around six weeks into pregnancy, although that timeframe isn’t specified in the measure. Medical experts say the heart doesn't begin to form until the fetus is at least nine weeks old, and they decry efforts to promote abortion bans by relying on medical inaccuracies. Nonetheless, at least 13 other states with Republican-dominated legislatures have adopted similar bans, although courts have blocked them all from being implemented. Democrats call the new Texas law an unconstitutional assault on women's health.