Ohio's Sherrod Brown, Rob Portman split on Democrats' abortion access bill. It won't advance.

Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown voted for a bill to protect abortion access nationwide even if states like Ohio banned it. But the proposed law, as expected, failed to get the needed votes to advance.

In fact, more senators voted against the bill than for it. The final tally was 49-51. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., broke with his party to vote against the proposal, which would have prohibited states from banning abortions before fetal viability, typically about 23 to 24 weeks into pregnancy.

Sen. Rob Portman, R-Terrace Park, joined fellow Republicans in voting against the proposed law. Portman pointed to problems with the bill, saying that Catholic hospitals could be forced to perform abortions against their beliefs.

"It's a pretty radical version," Portman told Ohio reporters Wednesday, describing himself as consistently "pro-life."

Brown, in a statement, said he voted for the bill to stand with women's "freedom to make their own personal health care decisions."

“If the leaked opinion is finalized, it will immediately hand that decision over to politicians in radical legislatures across the country while opening the door to all kinds of other government interference into people’s most personal decisions about how and when to have a family, such as birth control, marriage equality, and fertility treatments," Brown said.

More: Why was Roe v. Wade never codified in Congress? Democrats since Clinton 'kind of dropped it'

The bill also would have eliminated mandatory waiting periods, which 27 states require, according to the Guttmacher Institute, an abortion access advocacy and research group. Both Ohio and Kentucky have a 24-hour waiting period and required counseling.

Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., knew that he didn't have the votes to pass the bill but wanted to get each U.S. senator on the record before the November election. That won't matter for Portman, who is leaving the chamber after 2022. Brown is up for reelection in 2024.

The vote comes after a leaked U.S. Supreme Court opinion indicated the Court is poised to overturn the landmark abortion decision Roe v. Wade. A final decision is expected in the coming months.

Meanwhile, Ohio lawmakers are considering a proposal to ban abortions if Roe v. Wade is overturned. House Bill 598 has no exception for rape or incest. Doctors charged with performing an abortion could defend themselves in court if they did so to save the mother's life.

The bill's sponsor, Rep. Jean Schmidt, made headlines when she suggested a 13-year-old girl who became pregnant after a sexual assault had an "opportunity" to "help that life be a productive human being."

USA TODAY and Ohio bureau reporter Titus Wu contributed to this article.

Jessie Balmert is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Akron Beacon Journal, Cincinnati Enquirer, Columbus Dispatch and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.

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This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Brown, Portman divided on nationwide abortion access bill