SB542 requires that an obstetric ultrasound, along with a simultaneous verbal explanation and medical description of the “unborn child” it depicts, be performed on and displayed to a pregnant woman prior to an abortion.
The Senate passed SB542 on April 3, 2023, by a vote of 28 to 6. We have assigned pluses to the yeas because the care of human life—not its destruction—is the greatest responsibility of government. This bill places further restrictions on abortion providers by protecting a pregnant mother’s right to know and see “proof of life” of her preborn child. At the same time, lawmakers in Arkansas ought to proceed with efforts to abolish abortion and secure the right to life for every person. The right to life is the most fundamental, God-given, and “unalienable” right asserted in the Declaration of Independence and guaranteed by the Fifth and 14th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution.
