Va. House scraps invasive pre-abortion requirement

RICHMOND, Va. — Amid a public uproar that prompted Virginia's governor to withdraw his support, Republican legislators on Wednesday dropped a bitterly contested requirement that women seeking abortions undergo invasive ultrasound imaging, likely dooming the bill.

The Republican-controlled House of Delegates voted 65-32 for an amended bill that requires only an external ultrasound, not the vaginal insertion of a wand-like device that emits ultrasonic waves that are used to create images of the fetus.

The House amended the bill shortly after Republican Gov. Bob McDonnell issued a statement opposing the more invasive procedure. McDonnell, who has been mentioned as a possible vice-presidential candidate, shifted ground after the proposal drew outrage from women, national ridicule from television comedians and appeals from GOP moderates.

"Mandating an invasive procedure in order to give informed consent is not a proper role for the state," said McDonnell, who had voiced support for the legislation last week. "No person should be directed to undergo an invasive procedure by the state, without their consent, as a precondition to another medical procedure."

His written statement came as the House's majority Republicans quarreled over how to handle the legislation minutes before it was to be debated. House Republicans twice recessed Wednesday's session to regroup. The final vote was mostly along party lines.

The amended bill now returns to the Senate where its sponsor, Sen. Jill Vogel, said she will strike the legislation. A House version, by Del. Kathy Byron, is pending before a Senate committee.

The invasive ultrasound measure is among three anti-abortion measures coursing their way through a General Assembly where socially conservative Republicans gained dominance after last fall's elections.

One bill would give embryos the full legal protection of personhood and criminalize their destruction, outlawing almost all abortions and, critics say, some forms of contraception. It would take effect only if the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that legalized abortions is overturned.

Another would end state Medicaid funding for abortions sought by indigent women whose fetuses are severely and grossly deformed.

But the ultrasound bill provoked the most outrage and national attention.