Pittsburgh City Council gives 3 abortion rights bills preliminary approval

PITTSBURGH (KDKA/AP) - Pittsburgh City Council gave three abortion rights bills preliminary approval.

The bills would shield healthcare providers from out-of-state prosecution and instruct police to not enforce some abortion-related crimes if it's ever banned in Pennsylvania. 

It would also prohibit deceptive advertising by crisis pregnancy centers that may present themselves as abortion clinics but often try to discourage patients from getting an abortion.

The bills go up for final approval next week.  

Attempts to protect abortion rights come as tighter restrictions and bans are going into effect in conservative states after last month's Dobbs v. Jackson ruling in the U.S. Supreme Court, which overturned the nearly half-century-old holding from Roe v. Wade that found that the right to abortion was protected by the U.S. Constitution.

States now may restrict the procedure, and many have taken steps to curtail or ban abortions.

Earlier this week, Gov. Tom Wolf signed an executive order protecting out-of-state abortion seekers from being prosecuted in their home states. Wolf said he'll decline any request from another state to arrest or detain any out-of-state resident who travels to Pennsylvania to seek an abortion.