Indiana Senate passes ban on abortions for race, sex, disability

On Thursday, the Indiana State Senate voted to approve SB 313, a bill which would prohibit abortions sought based on the child’s race, sex, or diagnosis of a fetal disability, would ban the sale of fetal tissue, and would require parents of a preborn child diagnosed with a terminal abnormality to receive information about prenatal hospice care.

The bill passed 35-14, with four Republican senators joining Democrats against it. Opponents criticized the bill as a general attack on the right to abortion, as well as an attempt to force parents to raise children with expensive medical needs.

But Republican State Senator Travis Holdman, one of SB 313’s authors, said it “sends one clear message to the nation and to our fellow Hoosiers and that is that we value human life.”

Indiana Right to Life Vice President of Public Affairs Sue Swayze added, “Indiana’s one of the best states in the country for services available to parents with children with disabilities. But to consider the worth or the value of a child based on cost, is a road we really don’t want to go down.”

SB 313 is expected to face an uphill battle in the Indiana House.