Louisiana Lawmakers Boost Wait For An Abortion To 72 Hours

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Louisiana will become the sixth state to make women wait three days before they can have an abortion after meeting with the doctor.

Lawmakers in the House gave final passage Wednesday to the mandatory 72-hour waiting period. The 83-0 vote sends the bill to Gov. John Bel Edwards, who intends to sign it.

A woman in Louisiana currently has to wait 24 hours from the time she consults with a doctor and gets a mandatory ultrasound until getting an abortion. That wait time will continue only for women who live 150 miles or more from the nearest abortion clinic.

Supporters say tripling the wait gives women more time to consider alternatives to abortion. Opponents say it creates an undue burden to a legal medical procedure.

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House Bill 386: www.legis.la.gov

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