Rebecca Cook/Reuters, via Landov
It’s been a busy month for Michigan Governor Rick Snyder. The Republican leader—who openly opposes abortions—signed a bill into law Friday requiring facilities where at least 120 abortions are performed annually to obtain a state license as freestanding surgical facilities. The change means patients will be required to seek counseling before getting an abortion. Snyder sent out a public release backing the legislation, which pro-choicers have deemed a “backdoor assault” on the right-to-choice. “This bill respects a woman’s right to choose while helping protect her health and safety, including making sure a pregnant person is not being coerced into a decision,” he said. President of Planned Parenthood Cecile Richards disagrees, and said in a statement the bill “was meant to ban abortion in Michigan, and it was pushed through in a lame-duck session by legislators who were voted out of office because of their extreme views on women’s health.”