Nebraska Unicameral debate on trans youth healthcare set for next week

LINCOLN, Neb. (WOWT) - Nebraska state senators will debate LB574, the bill to ban gender-affirming care for minors, next week.

The bill, set for its third reading Tuesday, stoked tensions on the floor this week after AM1658, called “The Preborn Child Protection Act,” was attached to it by State Sen. Ben Hansen of Blair.

Opponents have categorized the amendment as a political maneuver to circumvent the rules after a six-week ban failed by one vote in the unicameral two weeks ago.

AM1658 is described as a 12-week abortion ban, but opponents of the bill argue it’s more like a 10-week ban as the new bill says gestational age is calculated from the first day of the last period, not post-fertilization.

Lawyers with the ACLU of Nebraska are exploring the possibility of a challenge regarding adding an abortion bill to a bill that would ban gender-affirming surgeries on minors. But supporters of the abortion ban argue that rules are meant to be broken.

In Nebraska, there were 2,360 abortions in 2021, according to the latest available data from the state; 89% of those happened at 12 weeks or earlier.

Copyright 2023 WOWT. All rights reserved.