A strict ban on abortions took effect in Florida on Wednesday, making it a felony to perform or actively participate in an abortion after six weeks' gestation, NBC News reports. While it had banned abortions after 15-weeks prior to Wednesday, the state had become a safe-haven for people seeking abortions in the South, given the stricter restrictions in the vast majority of its neighboring states. More than 9,3000 people traveled to Florida for abortions last year — more than double the number in 2020.
The new law has exceptions for rape, incest and human trafficking up to 15 weeks of pregnancy, and state law also allows abortions to save a woman’s life or to prevent “substantial and irreversible” physical impairment. But advocates warn that doctors might still worry about their legal liability. “It’s going to cause delays in care that are going to cost women significant health hazards or risks,” Dr. Daniel Sacks, a provider at Presidential Women’s Center in West Palm Beach, said of the new law. Anti-abortion-rights groups, however, are celebrating the new law. “Florida has taken efforts to provide a sanctuary for life, especially the most vulnerable, and provide significant financial resources for women to provide a wide range of options and resources that would protect them and facilitate their decision to choose life,” said Mat Staver, founder and chairman of Liberty Counsel, a legal organization based in Florida.