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Ohio Gov. John Kasich on Tuesday vetoed a controversial bill that would have banned abortions as early as six weeks into pregnancy but signed a measure prohibiting the procedure later in pregnancy. The measure the Republican governor rejected would have barred a woman from obtaining an abortion if a fetal heartbeat could be detected. The legislature passed the measure last week even though it conflicts with Supreme Court decisions upholding the right to abortion at least until the point at which the fetus is viable. The bill he signed, banning the procedure at 20 weeks of pregnancy, may run afoul of these rulings, because viability is generally interpreted to be around 24 weeks. (Somashekhar, 12/13)

The so-called heartbeat bill would have prohibited most abortions once a fetal heartbeat is detected, which can be as early as six weeks into pregnancy -- or before many women know they are pregnant. Its provisions cleared the Republican-led Legislature during a lame-duck flurry last week after being tucked into separate legislation. Similar measures elsewhere have faced legal challenges, and detractors in Ohio feared such legislation would lead to a costly fight in the courts. Opponents predicted it would be found unconstitutional, a concern Kasich shared. (Carr Smyth, 12/13)

In reaching the split decision on the two bans, adopted last week by the Ohio legislature, Mr. Kasich said the so-called heartbeat bill was “clearly contrary to the Supreme Court’s current rulings on abortion.” He called the 20-week ban the “best, most legally sound and sustainable approach to protecting the sanctity of human life.” The 20-week ban has no exceptions for rape or incest, and abortion rights advocates consider it extreme. Under existing Ohio law, there will be an exception for life of the mother, Mr. Kasich’s office said. Ohio currently bars abortions after 24 weeks of pregnancy. (Stolberg, 12/13)

The Heartbeat Bill's foremost champion, Janet Porter of Faith2Action, immediately denounced Kasich's "betrayal of life" and promised a campaign to find the necessary votes in the House to override the governor's veto. The Senate's vote was veto-proof on what would have been the nation's most stringent abortion law. (Ludlow, 12/13)

Abortion-rights advocates and the American Civil Liberties Union on Monday sued the state over abortion restrictions the groups say would have a chilling effect on free speech. The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Tallahassee, asks a judge to throw out part of a law requiring agencies that refer women to abortion providers to register with and pay a fee to the state. It was passed this spring by the Legislature as part of a broader abortion measure and signed into law by Gov. Rick Scott. (Auslen, 12/13)

A sweeping abortion law passed by Florida legislators this year — parts of which have already been struck down by the courts — is being challenged yet again. The American Civil Liberties Union of Florida filed a lawsuit late Monday on behalf of several ministers, rabbis and organizations that provide abortion counseling services to women. The lawsuit filed in a federal court in Tallahassee contends that the law violates constitutional rights by requiring groups to register with the state and pay a fee if they advise or help women seek abortions. The lawsuit also challenges a provision already in state law that requires groups to tell women about alternatives to abortion. (Fineout, 12/13)

The Oklahoma Supreme Court on Tuesday permanently blocked a state law that would have required abortion providers to have special relationships with hospitals, in continuing fallout from a U.S. Supreme Court ruling this year striking down a similar provision in Texas. The Oklahoma measure, passed in 2014, required a physician to have so-called admitting privileges at a hospital within 30 miles of the facility where he or she was performing an abortion. (Somashekhar, 12/13)

"Under the guise of the protection of women's health," Oklahoma Justice Joseph Watt wrote, "(the law) creates an undue burden on a woman's access to abortion, violating protected rights under our federal Constitution," referring specifically to the Texas case. Republican Gov. Mary Fallin signed the measure, Senate Bill 1848, into law in 2014, but courts had blocked it from taking effect. Tuesday's ruling overturns a lower court's decision in February that upheld the law. (Miller, 12/13)

Oklahoma plans to force hospitals, nursing homes, restaurants and public schools to post signs inside public restrooms directing pregnant women where to receive services as part of an effort to reduce abortions in the state. ... The provision for the signs was tucked into a law that the Legislature passed this year that requires the state to develop informational material "for the purpose of achieving an abortion-free society." The signs must be posted by January 2018. (Murphy, 12/13)

“A Woman’s Right to Know” is an informed-consent booklet for pregnant women, mandated by a 2003 state law in Texas. The Texas Department of Health Services published a revised version of this booklet in 2016, replacing the one that had been used since 2003. A reader pointed us to this blurb, included under the heading “Breast Cancer Risk,” in a section about the risks of getting an abortion. According to this booklet, there is research showing that having an abortion “will not provide” women the “increased protection against breast cancer.” What does the research say? (Ye Hee Lee, 12/14)