SEARCH SITE
VIRGINIA LAW PORTAL
- Code of Virginia
- Virginia Administrative Code
- Constitution of Virginia
- Charters
- Authorities
- Compacts
- Uncodified Acts
- RIS Users (account required)
SEARCHABLE DATABASES
- Bills & Resolutions
session legislation - Bill Summaries
session summaries - Reports to the General Assembly
House and Senate documents - Legislative Liaisons
State agency contacts
ACROSS SESSIONS
- Subject Index: Since 1995
- Bills & Resolutions: Since 1994
- Summaries: Since 1994
Developed and maintained by the Division of Legislative Automated Systems.
1997 SESSION
973822346Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That [ § 18.2-74.1 of the Code of Virginia is amended and
reenacted and that ] the Code of Virginia is amended by adding a section
numbered 18.2-74.2 as follows:
[ § 18.2-74.1. Abortion, etc., when necessary to save life of
woman.
In the event it is necessary for a licensed physician to terminate a human
pregnancy or assist in the termination of a human pregnancy by performing an
abortion or causing a miscarriage on any woman in order to save her life, in
the opinion of the physician so performing the abortion or causing the
miscarriage, §§ 18.2-71, 18.2-73 and 18.2-74 shall not be
applicable. In the event that a partial birth abortion is
necessary because no other medical procedure would suffice to save the life of
the woman, § 18.2-74.2 shall not be applicable. ]
§ 18.2-74.2. Partial birth abortion prohibited.
Notwithstanding the provisions of §§ 18.2-72, 18.2-73 and 18.2-74, a physician licensed by the Board of Medicine to practice medicine and surgery shall not knowingly perform a partial birth abortion [ unless the woman's life or health is at risk ] . The woman upon whom the abortion is performed in violation of this section may not be prosecuted under this section or any other provision of this article. A violation of this section shall be punished as a Class 1 misdemeanor. [ This section shall only apply to a fetus which is viable. ]
For purposes of this section and § 18.2-74.1, "partial birth
abortion" means an abortion in which the person performing the abortion
partially vaginally delivers a [ living
] fetus before killing the fetus and completing the delivery.