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Senate advances bill to require fetal anesthesia in certain late-term abortions after heated debate
Summary
Senators advanced SB 234, a measure requiring administration of anesthetic or analgesic to a fetus in abortions after the point the fetus could experience pain; sponsor argued it protects fetal life, while physicians and the Utah Medical Association warned the language could intrude on medical practice. The Senate voted to advance the bill to third reading (19–5).
Senator Daniel Bramble, sponsor of Senate Bill 234, told the Senate the bill would require “at the time an abortion is performed on a child that has developed to the stage of experiencing pain, that anesthesia would be required to be administered prior to forfeiting that child's life.” He said the intent is not to ban abortion but to require measures that prevent an unborn child from experiencing pain.
The bill drew extended floor debate. Bramble cited data on prematurity survival and referenced the U.S. House’s 2015 “Unborn Child Pain Protection” discussion, saying some infants survive at 20–22 weeks and that, if a life is taken, “we'll at least have the…
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