North Carolina Legislators Introduce Bill to Ban Abortions on Babies Starting at 12 Weeks

Pro-Life lawmakers in North Carolina have introduced a bill to ban abortions on unborn babies starting at 12 weeks. While pro-life advocates were hoping for legislation to protect babies from conception or at least a heartbeat bill protecting them starting at 6 weeks, the political reality of the situation prevented that.

North Carolina Republicans face an uphill battle in getting the legislation approved because pro-abortion Democrat Governor Roy Cooper is certain to veto any pro-life legislation and the stronger pro-life protections for babies will have a harder time securing the supermajority needed to override his veto.

North Carolina Republican legislative leaders said Tuesday there was agreement for a 12-week bill and House Speaker Tim Moore and Senate leader Phil Berger both said they would push pro=life legislation to their respective chambers.

North Carolina law currently prohibits almost all abortions after 20 weeks, so the new law would provide additional protections for babies from abortions. The new proposal would provide limited exceptions for cases of rape, incest or fetal abnormality and current law already provides the mother’s life as an exception.

The Care for Women, Children, and Families Act would protect babies eight weeks earlier than is provided under current state law, likely saving thousands of babies from abortion.

The bill puts guardrails around dangerous abortion pills and increases support for mothers and families. This follows the legislature advancing more than $11 million in support for pregnancy centers in the budget. The bill also contains provisions to make adoptions easier and to improve access to health care for children and pregnant women.

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“It’s time for North Carolina to take the next step in respecting the sanctity of human life,” said Sen. Joyce Krawiec, a Forsyth County Republican and one of the deal’s negotiators, added that the bill “will undoubtedly save lives and improve health outcomes for many pregnant women.”

Cooper is already attacking the moderate pro-life law, calling it “a terrible, unacceptable attack on the women of our state” even though it protects women’s lives before birth.

Republicans could theoretically achieve a veto override if Democratic Rep. Tricia Cotham who recently became a Republican, voted for the override. But he has previously supported abortion and there is no indication yet of the three whether he will vote for the bill and an override.

In response, the national pro-life organization Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America announced the findings of a new poll showing that nearly two-thirds (62%) of voters in the state support protecting unborn children at 12 weeks. The results also show that 67% of state voters support North Carolina’s existing parental consent laws.

Nearly two-thirds of North Carolina voters support protecting unborn children for at least 12 weeks, according to a poll by Differentiator Data. Only 22% of voters agree with allowing abortion up until birth, the position held by Gov. Roy Cooper and Attorney General Josh Stein. The poll surveyed 500 registered voters from January 9-12, 2023, and has a margin of error of 4.5%.

• 62% of North Carolinians support legislation to protect unborn babies for at least 12 weeks, with exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother.

• North Carolinians broadly support existing state laws requiring parental consent (67%), a 72-hour waiting period (57%) and an ultrasound before an abortion (55%).

Caitlin Connors, Southern Regional Director for SBA Pro-Life America, told LifeNews that her group supports the bill.

“Allowing abortion up to 20 weeks – mid-pregnancy and past the point where science shows an unborn child can feel pain – is unacceptable to the people of North Carolina. They compassionate and rightly concerned about their state becoming an abortion destination. In the months following the Dobbs Supreme Court victory, several states moved quickly to strengthen protections for unborn children and mothers, but in under pro-abortion extremists like Roy Cooper and Josh Stein, North Carolina failed. Thousands more innocent babies lost their lives in brutal abortions in the state, around 800 a month more than usual. We are talking about people with beating hearts and unique facial features, who suck their thumbs and respond to touch. We urge the legislature to update the laws to reflect science and the will of the people.

Based on the CDC’s most recent data, protecting unborn children at 12 weeks would affect more than 3,000 lives within the state each year and reduce abortion tourism in the state that has contributed to a nearly 25% increase in abortions in the first six months after Dobbs decision.

At 12 weeks gestation, all major organs are formed and the heart beats more than 10 million times. At this stage, babies suck their thumbs and already have a right or left hand preference. Recognizing prominent facial features including nose, cheeks, eyes and ears; the teeth are developing; and the body responds to touch. For more information on fetal development, see the Charlotte Lozier Institute’s “12 Facts in 12 Weeks.”