The Elliot Group, an anti-abortion group based out of Springfield, Illinois, is seeking to add a ballot initiative to the Missouri 2008 election that could greatly reduce access to abortion in the state. The Elliot Group claims that abortion causes long-term physical, psychological and emotional problems.
The proposal would require doctors to extensively review any so-called medical literature on abortion and investigate each patient’s background and lifestyle. It also would require doctors to certify that the abortion was necessary to avoid a woman’s death or prevent permanent disability. The proposal would subject doctors to lawsuits from women who later regretted their decision to terminate a pregnancy, and would offer no exception whatsoever for the victims of rape or incest, reports the Kansas City Star.
Supporters of the so-called “Prevention of Coerced and Unsafe Abortion Act” would have to gather about 90,000 signatures to get the measure on the ballot in November 2008, reports the St Louis Post-Dispatch. The measure will also be reviewed by the Missouri attorney general and state auditor.
