COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost sent out additional guidance on what exemptions are permitted under the state's Heartbeat Law on Thursday.
The first two have been reported before: If a physician determines there is no fetal heartbeat or if a physician determines the pregnant woman faces "serious risk of the substantial and irreversible impairment of a major bodily function."
The third exception is an ectopic pregnancy. Yost said in the guidance that these exceptions are not labeled as such in the law. You can read more about the guidelines here.
The newly released guidelines comes as Yost has faced criticism over his comments regarding a 10-year-old girl who traveled from Ohio to Indiana after she was allegedly raped by a 27-year-old Columbus man.
During an interview with Fox News earlier this week, Yost questioned the legitimacy of the story, which was originally published by the Indianapolis Star. When asked if he casted doubt on the story too early, he said no.
U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown, D — Ohio, said Yost and others owe the girl's family an apology.
"A number of high-ranking right-wing Republican officials, all with a political agenda, have exploited this situation, have lied about it, have tried to, if they've judged this 10-year-old and her family, and should be ashamed of themselves. They should quit trying to find loopholes and start apologizing to the people of our great state about what they've put this 10-year-old's family through," Brown said.
Peter Range, the executive director from Ohio Right to Life, said even though this case has sparked intense political dialogue, the focus should be on the girl and making sure she recovers.
"It should be on getting her the help and assistance that she needs as a society and as a state and as a country. But unfortunately, it's being used to justify abortion through all nine months of pregnancy. And I don't think that's right," Range said.
The man charged in the case, Gerson Fuentes, has been charged with one count of rape involving the girl. He is currently being held in the Franklin County Jail on a $2 million bond.