Tennessee state Capitol building front exterior in Nashville, with wind blowing the U.S. state flag outside on a partly cloudy day. | DustyPixel/Getty Images
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee has signed into law a bill requiring the burial or cremation of aborted babies remains, one of many pro-life bills enacted in the state in recent years.
Lee signed the Unborn Child Dignity Act into law last week. The bill declares that “final disposition of fetal remains from a surgical abortion at an abortion facility must be by cremation or interment.” The mother has the option to decide where she wants the remains disposed but if she declines to state a preference, the decision is left to the abortion facility.
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On two of the most hotly debated issues during the recently concluded session of the Tennessee General Assembly, two conservative Republican doctors stood on opposite sides.Â
When lawmakers debated whether institutions should be allowed to require the new COVID-19 vaccine, Rep. Bryan Terry of Murfreesboro was in favor of banning such requirements. Rep. Sabi Kumar of Springfield, meanwhile, cautioned his fellow Republicans.Â
âPublic welfare is what we are here to do,â Kumar said during a March committee debate. âWe are allowing our quest for liberty to interfere with public welfare. ⦠I donât think we should sacrifice anybody at the altar of our own personal liberty.â
13 May 2021
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee (R) signed a bill into law that will require the burial or cremation of the remains of surgically aborted babies.
Lee signed HB1181/SB828 last week. The bill summary states:
Generally under present law, the method of disposition of an aborted fetus or aborted fetal tissue must be in conformity with the rules of the board for licensing healthcare facilities. This bill deletes that provision and instead requires that final disposition of fetal remains from a surgical abortion at an abortion facility be by cremation or interment. This bill provides that a pregnant woman who has a surgical abortion has the right to determine the following regarding the fetal remains:
Tenn. Gov. Lee Signs Bill Requiring the Burial or Cremation of Babies Killed by Abortion By Michael W. Chapman | May 11, 2021 | 12:08pm EDT
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee (R). (Getty Images)
(CNS News) On Monday, Tennessee s Republican governor, Bill Lee, signed into law legislation that requires the burial or cremation of the remains of babies killed by surgical abortion. The facilities where the abortions occur will be required to do this, and the mother must fill out a form stating whether she wants the remains buried or cremated.
The law states, A pregnant woman who has a surgical abortion has the right to determine the following regarding the fetal remains: (A) Whether the final disposition is by cremation or interment; and (B) The location for the final disposition.
Tennessee bill requiring women to bury, cremate remains after an abortion heads to governorâs desk
Bill requiring burial or cremation of aborted fetal remains passes TN House, Senate By Kelli Cook | April 21, 2021 at 9:32 PM CDT - Updated April 21 at 11:01 PM
âNormally the baby is abandoned in the abortion clinic and itâs thrown out in the trash or medical waste which is trash,â said Representative Tim Rudd of Rutherford County.
Rudd is the primary sponsor of the original bill in the House. It was then approved in the Senate Wednesday morning.
If the woman chooses a burial location other than the one provided by the facility then the patient has to pay the burial bill.