Nebraska's 12-week abortion law, known as LB 574, went into effect after being signed by Republican Governor Jim Pillen. The law reduces the time window for legal abortions from 20 weeks to 12 based on gestational age, with exceptions for cases of rape, incest, and protecting the mother's life. While the abortion measures took immediate effect, the provisions related to transgender procedures will not be enforced until October. These restrictions limit access to puberty blockers and hormone therapy for residents under 19 years old and completely ban gender transition procedures for this age group. The law also tasks Nebraska's chief medical officer with establishing qualifying criteria for minors seeking puberty blockers or hormone therapy, including the minimum number of therapy hours and waiting periods.
LB 574 underwent changes during the legislative process, initially focusing solely on limitations for transgender services before incorporating abortion provisions. Senator Kathleen Kauth, the bill's sponsor, expressed satisfaction with the final version, referring to it as the “Let Them Grow Act” aimed at protecting children, both preborn and transgender. Governor Pillen celebrated the law's enactment as a significant victory for social conservatives and emphasized the state's readiness to address any legal challenges that may arise. The legislation follows previous attempts by Nebraska Republicans to pass more stringent abortion restrictions, with the 12-week limit being introduced after the failure of a six-week abortion law by a single vote.
To read more about Nebraska's abortion ban, please read this article from Fox News. An excerpt of the article has been copied below:
The bill, LB 574, shrinks the state's window for legal abortions from 20 weeks to 12, based on gestational age. The law also has exceptions for rape, incest and protecting the life of the mother.
While the bill's abortion measures took effect immediately on Tuesday, due to an emergency clause in the bill, the measures pertaining to transgender procedures will not take effect until October. Those restrictions limit access to puberty blockers and hormone therapy for all residents under the age of 19, while outright banning gender transition procedures for the age group.
