New Battle Over Abortion Heats Up in Virginia

The fight that won't go away

The General Assembly's opening Wednesday served notice that 2013 may offer a repeat of last year's high-profile fights on abortion rights that are still fresh in the memories of legislature observers.

Several Republicans have filed bills to curb abortions in some circumstances by ending state support for the procedures for poor women who are going to have a deformed baby, making it criminal for doctors to perform abortions based on gender, and limiting coverage of contraception.

Democrats, meanwhile, are pledging to fight those measures and offering bills to reverse recently enacted policies that require women to undergo a preabortion ultrasound and make abortion clinics meet hospital-like building standards.