ATLANTA - Democratic state lawmakers have a renewed push to fight Georgia's restrictive abortion law.
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Democratic lawmakers to introduce ‘Heartbeat Bill’ repeal
Georgia's new law restricting abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected has been blocked by a federal judge.
The law bans abortions once a “detectable human heartbeat” is present, with some limited exceptions. Cardiac activity can be detected by ultrasound as early as six weeks into a pregnancy, before many women realize they’re expecting, according to a legal challenge.
The law makes exceptions in the case of rape and incest, as long as the woman files a police report first. It also allows for abortions after cardiac activity is detected when the life of the woman is at risk or when a fetus is determined not to be viable because of a serious medical condition.
Gov. Brian Kemp signed the bill into law last year, but it was blocked by a federal judge afterward.
MORE: Judge asked to decide permanent fate of Georgia abortion law
Several pro-choice groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union, Planned Parenthood, and the Center for Reproductive Rights, filed lawsuits against the bill, claiming that it was unconstitutional.
Now, a group of Democratic state representatives is pushing legislation to block the bill.
"We believe that men and women are capable of making their own health care decisions without the government getting in their way," state Rep. Beth Moore said.
This newly proposed bill would restore Georgia's previous abortion law, which bans abortions after 20 weeks of gestation. That law is still in effect while the new law is blocked.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.