AUSTIN, Texas -- A so called 'heartbeat' bill is gaining ground at the Texas Capitol.
- HB1500 would ban abortions as soon as heartbeat is detected
- A heartbeat can be detected as early as six weeks
- Critics say this would cause women to seek dangerous alternatives
Rep. Briscoe Cain, R-Deer Park, has filed HB 1500. It would ban abortions as soon as a heartbeat is detected in a sonogram. In most cases, a heartbeat can be heard at six-weeks.
Texas is one of eleven states that filed this kind of legislation.
Cain said a heartbeat is a universal sign of life.
"The idea behind them is that when a heartbeat is detected, the baby's protected," Cain said.
Texas’ current law bans abortions at 20 weeks and Cain’s push to change it has abortion rights groups sounding the alarm.
Delma Catalina Limones with NARAL Pro-Choice Texas said in a state with already tight abortion laws, banning them would cause women to seek out dangerous, unregulated forms of pregnancy termination.
"Politicians should be working to make abortion more accessible, not pursue outright bans like HB 1500," Limones said.
Representative Cain's bill would make exceptions to the heartbeat rule in extreme medical emergencies that could risk the life of the mother. However, there is no exception in the bill for cases of incest or rape.
Click the link above to find out more about what the change in legislation could mean for Texans, the possible long legal fight ahead and where Texas voters stand on the issue.