By Dave Andrusko

If you have a computer or access to one, you can download a very helpful resource from the NRLC website. It is a precise list of the laws which have weaved viewing ultrasounds into the fabric of women’s right to know laws.

Since 1992, states have increasingly passed protective laws called Women’s Right to Know Laws/Informed Consent. These laws are effective in lowering the abortion rate and protecting unborn children because pregnant mothers are able to receive factual, scientific information on their unborn children and local resources that offer alternatives to abortion.

Another aspect of the law that has recently gained national attention is the ultrasound Right to View laws. These laws mainly require abortion clinics to offer a pregnant mother the opportunity to view an ultrasound of her unborn child before an abortion is performed. Some states vary; some indicate that the mother must be offered a chance to see an ultrasound while others require that she must request to see the ultrasound of her unborn child. A few states’ laws only apply to unborn children at a certain gestational age and not throughout pregnancy.

You can find this resource at www.nrlc.org/WRTK/UltrasoundLaws/StateUltrasoundLaws.pdf.