According to a NYT article a new study outside the US has come to the conclusion that laws forcing women to have ultrasounds before having an abortion do not change the women's mind!
What intrigues me is that these invasive laws are not changing women's minds, they are, in some instances, reassuring the woman that what she's doing is the RIGHT thing for her. I suspect this is the exact opposite effect the anti-choicers had in mind.
So, once further studies, preferably one done here in America, confirm or deny these findings, will the states that have these laws on their books take another look at them? I suspect, like abstinence only, which HAS been proven ineffective, these laws mandating medically unnecessary ultrasounds will continue to add to a woman's burden if she is considering having an abortion.
If these laws continue and more states decide to add ultrasound requirements for a woman to have a legal medical procedure, then the laws purpose will not be to 'save' any baby, but to become a tool to intimidate women, no matter how ineffective it is.
I have always consitered ultrasound mandates to be insulting to a woman's intelligence and ability to make informed decisions without governmental interference. To me, they don't give a woman more information that would influence a mind already made up, and in fact, does more harm, by adding an extra helping of guilt for an already difficult decision. The Times article stated this was not always the case, and that the ultrasound did provide some relief to the woman, so the laws can do some good for the woman, which of course, was never their intent.
If these laws are upheld, then they need to be modified so they are NOT mandatory. Just as the woman has the right to terminate an unwanted pregnancy, she should be the one to decide if she wants an ultrasound, NOT the state she lives in, not politicians, and certainly not clergy!