Director, Commonwealth Policy Center

Kentucky has become a leader when it comes to protecting unborn life. The latest bill in Frankfort would ban all abortions in the Commonwealth after a heartbeat is detected. This means that at around 6-8 weeks all abortions would be outlawed. This latest pro-life bill is part of a larger pro-life trend. Two years ago, the legislature passed the Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act. Last year, they banned "dismemberment abortion," a particularly gruesome type of abortion. The fetal heartbeat bill is consistent with another law already on the books that acknowledges and protects unborn life in the womb. It's called the fetal homicide law that says if a pregnant woman is assaulted and her unborn child is harmed, then there were two crimes committed because two people were involved.