Informed Consent Heads for Passage in Virginia after Long Battle.(Brief Article)

Pro-lifers in Virginia are elated that victory in a battle that began 22 years ago appears near.

A measure providing for "A Woman's Right to Know--Informed Consent" overcame a major hurdle February 6 when it passed the Virginia Senate 24-16. The Virginia House of Delegates passed a similar bill three days before on a vote of 64-34.

Each bill now goes to the other body, but since the informed consent wording is the same, further significant problems are not expected. Governor James S. Gilmore has given strong support to the issue and is certain to sign.

In his January 10 "State of the Commonwealth" address Gov. Gilmore said, "I support legislation to require informed consent and establish a 24-hour waiting period for abortion."

"Virginians recognize that no woman can make an informed choice in an informed choice in an informational void," said Louise D. Hartz, president of the Virginia Society for Human Life (VSHL). VSHL State Legislation Director Fiona Givens explained, "This Woman's Right to Know bill will empower all women in the Commonwealth who are considering abortion with the information they need to make an informed choice." The office of Senator J. Randy Forbes, chief patron of the Senate bill, has been deluged with over 23,000 letters and petitions from Virginia citizens expressing their support for this legislation.

Geline Williams, NRLC Board Chairwoman and VSHL Delegate to the NRLC Board, observed that, "Many Virgina women who had suffered because they had not been properly informed before undergoing an abortion sought this legislation. "Both houses of the Virginia General Assembly, she said, "are to be commended for listening to women and passing this legislation so that other women will not have to suffer because of the lack of proper information which has been routinely withheld by abortionists."

"Now who's against this bill?" Forbes asked, according to the Richmond Times-Dispatch. "The abortion clinics are against it and their lobbyists are against it, and it's just like the Casablanca movie: At the end of the movie, instead of rounding up the ...