Jackson Free Press

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Mississippi could become the first U.S. state to try to ban most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy, setting up a possible court challenge.

A committee on Tuesday approved House Bill 1510 , sending it to the full Republican-controlled House for more debate.

Mississippi already bans most abortions after 20 weeks, which is tied for the nation's earliest ban.

The bill would allow exceptions if a woman's life is endangered or a fetus has a severe abnormality.

House Judiciary B Committee Chairman Andy Gipson says Mississippi wants to prevent women from being adversely affected by abortion.

Felicia Brown-Williams, state director for Planned Parenthood Advocates Southeast, calls the proposal unconstitutional, saying the U.S. Supreme Court won't allow bans before a fetus can live outside the womb.