Wednesday, September 06, 2000
MD: Late-term abortion ban would restrict other methods
By James Hannah
The Associated Press
DAYTON, Ohio — A new Ohio law that would ban a late-term abortion procedure would rarely allow exceptions and also restrict other methods of abortion, a doctor fighting the law said Tuesday.
Dr. Martin Haskell testified in U.S. District Court the law would ban the procedure unless it is necessary for the life or health of the mother.
“The woman would have to be near death or near losing some part of her body in order for the procedure to be performed,” said Dr. Haskell, who performs the procedure and is suing the state to block enforcement of the law signed in May by Gov. Bob Taft.
The law, which has not taken effect, would make the procedure a crime, with penalties of up to eight years in prison and a maximum fine of $15,000.
Karl Schedler, an assistant Ohio attorney general, said the new law would not ban abortion, only one specific method.
“If the Ohio statute were to go before the U.S. Supreme Court today, this statute would be found to be constitutional,” Mr. Schedler said.
The procedure, known medical ly as dilation and extraction, involves draining the skull of a fetus before the fetus is fully removed from the uterus. Opponents refer to the procedure as partial-birth abortion.
Dr. Haskell, owner of Women's Medical Professional Corp., operates clinics in Cincinnati, Dayton and Akron. He said he knows of three other doctors in Ohio who also use the procedure.
Dr. Haskell said he has performed the procedure more than 2,000 times and never had a major complication.
“The advantages are a faster and smoother operation, very little trauma, minimal blood loss,” he said.
He said he has used the procedure on women wanting abortions because they have severe diabetes, asthma or other illnesses aggravated by their pregnancies.
It also has been used on a mentally ill patient advised by her psychiatrist to get an abortion, he said.
The law had been scheduled to go into effect Aug. 18, but U.S. District Judge Walter Rice issued a temporary restraining order blocking enforcement. On Friday, Judge Rice extended his order to Sept. 19.
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