Iowa representative Steve King has introduced the first so-called "heartbeat bill" at the federal level. The TRAP (targeted regulation of abortion providers) law would issue a nationwide ban on abortions from the moment fetal cardiac activity can be detected. This typically happens around the 6-week mark—before many women even realize they're pregnant.

In a press release about the bill, King called landmark Supreme Court case Roe v. Wade "unconstitutional." He also said, "If a heartbeat is detected, the baby is protected." (Note: "Baby" is a misnomer. The proper term would be "embryo," and the embryo would only be the size of a pomegranate seed this early in a pregnancy.) Under the new bill, any abortion provider who knowingly performs an abortion without determining a heartbeat, without informing the patient of a heartbeat, or despite the presence of a heartbeat could face fines—as well as a prison sentence of up to five years.

Here's the thing: Doctors measure a pregnancy by counting the weeks since a woman's last period. So for many women, six weeks pregnant really just means two weeks after a missed period. That's not a lot of time to make a critical reproductive health care decision. "Women are usually about five or six weeks pregnant when they realize," Juana Cuevas, M.D., ob/gyn at Every Woman Wellness previously told SELF. And women whose menstrual cycles aren't regular might not realize until much later. Not to mention, some women don't learn they're pregnant until after their second missed period—typically around eight weeks into pregnancy. That's because many women experience implantation bleeding—which can be misinterpreted as a period—three or four weeks after their last period. By that point, these women would have passed the 6-week mark, and they'd no longer be able to access abortion services. This is why some critics are calling this legislation a "total abortion ban"—because even though abortions would be allowed before the sixth week of pregnancy, many women wouldn't have the opportunity to get them before then. (Learn more about what it means to be six weeks pregnant here.)

This bill is modeled off similar legislation proposed in Ohio at the end of last year. Ohio governor John Kasich ultimately vetoed the state's so-called Heartbeat Bill (which he said he feared might not be constitutional) in favor of a 20-week abortion ban. Other states, like North Dakota and Arkansas, have also tried to pass similar "total abortion bans," but both were struck down in higher courts.

King's office plans to release information about next steps for the bill next week.

Read the bill in full here.

Feeling motivated to act? There are tons of ways to make your voice heard. SELF's resources on finding activist opportunities and getting involved in policy decisions are great places to start. If you're passionate about women's access to reproductive health care in particular, you can also consider: donating to the Center for Reproductive Rights, volunteering for NARAL Pro-Choice America, donating to the Reproductive Health Access Project, or volunteering for Planned Parenthood. Other organizations can help families in need access affordable childcare, job training, and much-needed food and household supplies.

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