RWNJ Florida Governor Rick Scott signed a law (HB1) called the “Grieving Families” Act. The law will go into effect July 1, and it gives women the option to request a “nonviable birth” certificate in the event that she has a miscarriage.
Florida is now the first state to require this. It allows women the option for a “nonviable birth” certificate for fetuses aged 9 weeks to 20 weeks. It requires the parents to provide the name and sex of the fetus, which is kind of idiotic since in most instances the gender of a fetus cannot be determined reliably until between 18-20 weeks of gestation.
Florida NOW President Terry Sanders told the AP:
“Unfortunately we were pretty much the only ones willing to step up on this bill in Tallahassee. We know the anti-choice movement has well thought these tiny steps toward their goal of denying women reproductive freedom.”
Despite these concerns, the bill received support from both sides of the aisle. They say they’re not defining life, but they are calling it a birth certificate.
The law already requires a death certificate and allows women to request a birth certificate for fetuses miscarried or stillborn later in pregnancy. This makes that date even sooner.
Giving rights to an unborn fetus has long been a strategy of the pro-life movement. They keep trying to establish “personhood” for unborn fetuses.
Other states, such as Texas, have passed laws requiring burial or cremation for unborn fetuses. This is just pushing the personhood thing even further.
Republican Rep. Bob Cortes, who sponsored the bill, said:
“I’ve made it clear since Day 1 that this was not intended to be anything other than to give parents an opportunity to obtain a certificate when they lose a child. It’s not something that’s being mandated. It’s not required for everybody to do. We’re not defining life.”
Democratic Rep. Richard Stark, the only one who voted against the bill, said that it was a backdoor way to define when life begins.
Featured image via YouTube screenshot.
