US House passes bill to ban abortion after 20 weeks

The US House of Representatives has approved a legislation to ban abortion after 20 weeks of pregnancy.

While the measure is unlikely to become law, it faces opposition in the Senate and a White House veto threat.

According to the Washington Post, the vote, 228 to 196, was mostly along party lines, with just six Republicans voting with Democrats against it and six Democrats voting with Republicans in its favor.

The bill, the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, was authored by Republican Trent Franks, and aims to capitalize on the public outrage surrounding Kermit Gosnell, the Philadelphia abortion doctor who was convicted last month of first-degree murder in the case of three babies born alive in his clinic.

The vote on Tuesday marks the first time Congress has voted to redefine the point where a fetus becomes viable.

According to the report, the vote comes as anti-abortion legislation has gained traction on the state level, buoyed by Republican gains in both legislatures and governships.

This year 14 states, Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Utah, have enacted 32 measures imposing new restrictions on abortions, the report added.