Legislation was introduced in the GOP-dominated House in Kentucky aimed at easing the state’s near-total abortion ban by creating limited exceptions for pregnancies caused by rape or incest. The bill, filed by Republican state Rep. Ken Fleming, would allow abortions in cases of rape and incest if done no later than six weeks after the first day of the woman’s last menstrual period. It would also permit abortions to remove a dead fetus or in cases of a lethal fetal anomaly. The measure includes a provision for physicians to document the circumstances surrounding an abortion performed under state law.
The current near-total abortion ban in Kentucky has been in place since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. The state’s trigger law, which went into effect, bans abortions except when necessary to save the mother’s life or prevent a disabling injury, with no exceptions for cases of rape or incest. Fleming’s proposal seeks to change this by including exceptions for life-saving measures for the mother and in cases involving rape or incest. Current exceptions to save the mother’s life or prevent disabling injuries would remain in place under the bill.
The issue of abortion has been prominent in Kentucky’s political landscape, with Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear, an abortion-rights supporter, winning reelection to a second term and opposing the state’s sweeping abortion ban. The state’s Supreme Court refused to strike down the ban last year, leaving unanswered larger constitutional questions about the legality of access to abortion in Kentucky. A Kentucky woman sued in late 2023 to demand the right to an abortion but later withdrew the lawsuit after learning her embryo no longer had cardiac activity.
Kentucky is one of 14 states with a ban on abortions at all stages of pregnancy currently in effect. Since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, bans of some kind have been implemented in most Republican-controlled states. Georgia and South Carolina have bans on abortion once cardiac activity can be detected, while Utah and Wyoming have bans throughout pregnancy, though enforcement has been paused by courts pending legal challenges. In Kentucky, voters rejected a ballot measure in 2022 aimed at denying constitutional protections for abortion.
The prospects for Fleming’s bill in the Kentucky House are uncertain, with House Speaker David Osborne stating that the GOP supermajority has not discussed any specific abortion bill. The last-minute filing of the legislation mirrors a similar attempt by another GOP lawmaker last year, which did not make headway as the abortion issue was skipped over by the Republican supermajorities in the legislature. The bill’s introduction reflects ongoing debates and conflicts surrounding abortion policy in the state and the broader legal and political landscape surrounding reproductive rights in the United States.
