(IBTIMES) — Physicians who perform abortions in Tennessee could have their identities revealed online, while women who receive the procedure could have their demographic information published for public perusal under a new bill pending in the state House of Representatives that is scheduled to come before a committee on Wednesday.
The legislation, known as the Life Defense Act of 2012, would require Tennessee’s Department of Health to publish extensive details about women who receive abortions, giving lawmakers a rare chance to make a move that will potentially regulate the controversial procedure.
In 2000, the Tennessee State Supreme Court ruled abortion is a right protected under the state constitution, making it almost impossible for conservative lawmakers to push through some of the divisive abortion-regulating laws that have been popping up across state legislatures in recent months.
