April 12 (UPI) -- Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt signed a bill Tuesday making it a felony for medical providers to perform nearly all abortions in the state.
Medical providers convicted of performing or attempting to perform an abortion except to save the life of a pregnant woman in a medical emergency face up to 10 years in prison or a fine up to $100,000 under Senate Bill 612, which the Oklahoma House approved last week.
Stitt approved the bill, likely to take effect in late August after the end of the legislative session, in a signing ceremony Tuesday.
"As Governor, I promised to sign every pro-life legislation that hit my desk," Stitt said in a Twitter post, which showed him behind his desk flanked by supporters with a sign that said, "Life is A Human Right." "Today I kept that promise by signing SB 612 into law, once again showing the world that Oklahoma is the most pro-life state in the country."
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The bill makes no exception for rape or incest.
Critics say the bill is unconstitutional and a reproductive rights group plans to sue.
"The U.S. Supreme Court's failure to stop Texas from nullifying the constitutional right to abortion has emboldened other states to do the same," Center for Reproductive Rights President and CEO Nancy Northrup said in a statement. "Oklahoma's total abortion ban is blatantly unconstitutional and will wreak havoc on the lives of people seeking abortion care within and outside the state. With the Texas six-week ban in place, many people are traveling to Oklahoma to get care. We've sued the state of Oklahoma 10 times in the last decade to protect abortion access and we will challenge this law as well to stop this travesty from ever taking effect."
Vice President Kamala Harris called the bill "shameful" after the GOP-dominated Oklahoma House voted 70-14 in favor the bill last week, with 16 members not voting. The GOP-dominated Oklahoma Senate voted 38-9 in favor, with one member not voting, in March.
"Right now, reproductive rights are under attack in states across our nation," Harris said in a Twitter post. "The Oklahoma legislature advanced a shameful bill that would prohibit almost all abortions if put into effect. If signed, this bill will only prevent women from getting the health care they need."
With seven other anti-abortion bills under consideration in the Oklahoma legislature, Tamya Cox-Touré, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Oklahoma, has said in a statement that the state is "facing an abortion access crisis."
One of the bills, Senate Bill 1503, is similar to the Texas law because it would ban abortions except for medical emergency after a "fetal heartbeat," is detected, typically around six weeks into the pregnancy, and would allow private civil enforcement of the law.
