RALEIGH, N.C. —With less than 48 hours until North Carolina’s recently passed 12-week abortion ban goes into effect, Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper has signed last-minute changes initiated by Republicans into law.
On June 22, as lawmakers’ work was winding down for the week, Republicans in the N.C. Senate added one more bill to the calendar. Sen. Joyce Krawiec, one of the main sponsors of the abortion law, then introduced an amendment to the bill that included “technical clarifying changes” to the abortion law. The amendment was adopted, and the bill went on to pass Tuesday with broad, bipartisan support.
“In addition to being dangerous for women, the rushed abortion ban was so poorly written that it is causing real uncertainty for doctors and other health care providers,” Cooper wrote in a statement announcing he had signed House Bill 190. “This bill is important to clarify the rules and provide some certainty, however we will continue fighting on all fronts the Republican assault on women’s reproductive freedom.”
