Abortion providers sue to block Iowa's new 6-week 'fetal heartbeat' abortion ban

Abortion providers and the American Civil Liberties Union have filed a lawsuit seeking to block newly passed legislation in Iowa that would ban most abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy, when cardiac activity is detected in an embryo.

The Iowa Legislature approved the "fetal heartbeat" bill Tuesday in an all-day special session. When Gov. Kim Reynolds signs it into law on Friday, Iowa doctors will be forbidden from providing abortions after cardiac activity is detected with an abdominal ultrasound.

There are exceptions to the ban: to preserve the life of the mother and for pregnancies resulting from rape or incest.

Medical providers say the law will prohibit most abortions after about six weeks of gestation − measured as six weeks from the first day of the last menstrual period.

Planned Parenthood of the Heartland, the Emma Goldman Clinic, and the ACLU of Iowa challenged the law on Wednesday. They're asking a Polk County District judge to temporarily block the law, then to hear arguments about whether the law should be permanently blocked.

"If this abortion ban goes into effect, it will place an unacceptable burden on patients’ ability to access essential abortion care, especially those who already face systemic inequities," Planned Parenthood North Central States President Ruth Richardson said in a statement. "Hundreds of Iowans will be impacted in mere weeks. We refuse to stand idly by and will fight every step of the way to block this abortion ban and restore Iowans’ rights.” 

A nearly identical law in 2018 was blocked by the courts.

Reynolds sought to revive that law in 2022 after federal and state court decisions rolled back some protections for abortion. But the Iowa Supreme Court deadlocked 3-3 last month, leaving the law blocked and returning the question to the Iowa Legislature.

Reynolds said she intends to sign the new bill into law on Friday.

"The Iowa Supreme Court questioned whether this legislature would pass the same law they did in 2018, and today they have a clear answer," she said in a statement Tuesday. "The voices of Iowans and their democratically elected representatives cannot be ignored any longer, and justice for the unborn should not be delayed.”

Katie Akin is a politics reporter for the Des Moines Register, part of the Paste BN Network. Reach her at kakin@registermedia.com or on Twitter at @katie_akin.