The 99th Tennessee General Assembly enacted a ban on "partial birth abortions," defined in the legislation as abortions "in which the person performing the abortion partially vaginally delivers a living fetus before killing the fetus and completing the delivery." The bill passed the State Senate by a 30-3 vote and passed the House unanimously. Signed into law June 13 by Governor Don Sundquist, the ban was scheduled to take effect July 1.
Third-trimester abortions were already illegal in Tennessee, except for special circumstances within the guidelines established by Roe v. Wade. No doctor in Tennessee is known to have performed the banned procedure, which is known medically as "intact dilation and extraction."
The new law makes it a felony for a doctor to perform intact D&E abortions, but does not allow prosecution of women who have this type of abortion. An exception is made only to save the life of a woman whose life is endangered by "physical" illness or injury. There are no exceptions to protect a woman's health or for endangerment due to mental or emotional disorders.
The Tennessee "Partial Birth" bill was modeled after the Federal bill. The Tennessee legislature was participating in a national trend. With all the publicity on partial birth abortion, there has been a rush for each state to have something on their books limiting a medical procedure that is not available in many areas. A few governors have bucked the trend. A similar bill in Missouri was vetoed and the governor of New Jersey promised to veto another.
Last Modified October 23, 1997