On May 4, Iowan governor Kim Reynolds signed legislation Senate Bill (SB) 359, popularly known as “the heartbeat bill.”The bill, due to go into effect on July 1, is currently the strictest abortion ban in the United States.

Bill 359 prohibits physicians from performing an abortion without testing for a fetal heartbeat. The detection of such a heartbeat could occur as early as six weeks into the pregnancy — though such a timeline is not explicitly mentioned in the bill. However, many individuals who can get pregnant are unaware of even being so up until this time.

While Planned Parenthood and the ACLU are taking the Iowan Senate Bill 359 to court, it is important to look at the larger picture. Abortion laws have been under attack for a long time, beyond just the current federal administration.

The entire article is here.