[JURIST] The US House of Representatives [official website] approved a bill [HR 36] on Wednesday that would ban most abortion after 20 weeks, despite strong opposition from the White House. The Republican-led House approved the bill by a margin of 242-184. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte [official website] called the vote “a victory for the most innocent and defenseless among us, our children.” The bill, officially titled the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, faces an uncertain future in the Senate. The Center for Reproductive Rights [advocacy website] called the bill “cruel and unconstitutional,” adding that it included exceptions only for women who are rape survivors and have received medical care or counseling at least 48 hours prior to seeking an abortion, minors who report rape or incest to law enforcement or child protection agencies, and women with life-threatening conditions.

Abortion has been a heated topic of discussion in recent years. Earlier this month Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin signed a bill into law extending the mandatory waiting period [JURIST report] for women seeking an abortion from 24 to 72 hours. In April Tennessee lawmakers approved two measures [JURIST report] that, if signed into law, will require state abortion clinics to be licensed as surgical centers and require women to wait 48 hours after receiving counseling before being able to get an abortion. Also in April Kansas Governor Sam Brownback signed a bill [JURIST report] that bans all forms of dismemberment abortion unless necessary to protect the life or health of the mother.