Florida House is set to take up a six-week abortion limit this week

abortion rights Supreme Court — "Keep your laws off our bodies" sign at the “Bans Off Our Bodies” rally along the downtown waterfront of St. Petersburg, Florida. By Seán Kinane/WMNF News (24 June 2022).

The Florida House this week could give final approval to a bill that seeks to prevent abortions after six weeks of pregnancy.

The House will take up the proposal (HB 7 and SB 300) on Thursday, which could lead to a vote on Friday, according to a document posted Monday evening.

The Senate on April 3 voted 26-13 to approve the six-week limit, and the Republican-controlled House is expected to follow suit.

If passed by the Legislature and signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis, the proposal would be subject to a major caveat: Seven abortion clinics and a physician filed a constitutional challenge to a 15-week limit passed last year.

A key issue in that case is whether the limit violates a privacy clause in the Florida Constitution that has helped protect abortion rights in the state for more than three decades.

Under the proposed legislation, moving to a six-week limit would be contingent on the Florida Supreme Court effectively upholding the 15-week law.