Abortion is legal in the United States thanks to Roe v. Wade – but abortion laws and restrictions vary from state to state. Select your state to see current abortion laws and how access to abortion would change if Roe v. Wade was cancelled. 5 states have protections for abortion providers and, in some cases, people who help patients reach abortion restrictions and bans outside the state. Currently, abortion is illegal in Alabama, Arkansas, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas and Wisconsin, with a few exceptions, according to the Guttmacher Institute. According to the Washington Post, all states have exceptions to save the life of the pregnant person, but few have exceptions for rape or incest. Voters amended the Tennessee state constitution in 2014 to repeal abortion protections afforded by a 2000 Supreme Court decision. Laws modeled on Texas SB 8, the self-defense justice law that went into effect in September 2021. These laws prohibit abortion at an early gestational age and are enforced through private rights of action that allow members of the public to sue abortion providers and those who help others access abortion care. On September 9, 2021, Attorney General Merrick Garland sued the U.S. Department of Justice against the State of Texas over the Texas law, arguing that „the law under the Supremacy Clause and the Fourteenth Amendment is invalid, anticipated by federal law, and violates the doctrine of interstate immunity.“ [74] Garland added that the U.S.
government „has an obligation to ensure that no state can deprive individuals of their constitutional rights.“ [75] The complaint alleges that Texas enacted the law „in flagrant disregard of the Constitution.“ [76] The U.S. District Court in Austin, Texas, includes a declaration that Texas law is unconstitutional and an injunction against state actors and any individual who can sue under SB 8. [76] [75] The lawsuit has been controversial, with critics citing concerns about the politicized nature of the prosecution and possible violations of civil liberties. [77] [78] Georgia passed an abortion law on May 7, 2019, banning abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected, usually six weeks after the last menstrual period. [7] The law makes no exceptions for cases of rape or incest. [17] The constitutionality of the law has been challenged by the American Civil Liberties Union, Planned Parenthood and the Center for Reproductive Rights. In October 2019, the federal judge in charge of the case blocked the application of the ban, which was due to take effect in January 2020, on the grounds that the plaintiffs had demonstrated a likelihood of winning the case. [18] Protesters on both sides of the abortion debate outside the U.S.
Supreme Court building. In 2015, Kansas became the first state to ban the dilation and evacuation procedure, a common second-trimester abortion procedure. [29] But the new law was later struck down by the Kansas Court of Appeals in January 2016 without ever going into effect. [30] In April 2019, the Kansas Supreme Court upheld the lower court`s decision, ruling that the right to abortion is included in the Constitution and the State Bill of Rights, so that even though Roe v. Wade is cancelled and federal protection of abortion rights is removed, the right would still be allowed in Kansas, subject to changes to the state Constitution. [31] After both houses of the Kansas State Legislature passed a constitutional amendment to overturn the Kansas Supreme Court`s decision, the proposed amendment was put to a referendum of voters. The August 2, 2022 referendum led to a strong rejection of the amendment (and thus a reaffirmation that the Kansas Constitution includes a right to abortion). [32] „After Roe Fell: Abortion Laws by State“ examines abortion laws, constitutions, and court decisions and places each state, territory, and District of Columbia in one of five categories: widespread, protected, unprotected, hostile, and illegal. Click on this tool to learn more about all the prohibitions and restrictions currently in place on the books in each state. This tool is updated in real time. Abortion is legal in Guam despite several attempts at restriction, but has not been available since 2016, when the last provider retired. Minnesotans` right to abortion is protected by a 1995 state Supreme Court decision, and Governor Tim Walz said that „no abortion ban will ever become law during his tenure.“ In 2018, abortion rights were incorporated into a state law that also requires insurers providing maternity care to cover abortions.
In March 2022, the state passed a law protecting both patients and health care providers from out-of-state law enforcement in response to laws in Texas and elsewhere that allow citizens to sue abortion providers. In late 2020, the state also passed a law called the Roe Act, which expanded access to abortion and, in the case of Roe V, explicitly legalized it. Wade is overthrown. Abortions are initially legal up to 20 weeks after fertilization. A state law banning abortion after six weeks was ordered. However, the case remains open and prosecutions could lift this injunction, although it could take weeks or months. The law provides exceptions in cases of rape, incest, to save the life of the pregnant person and in cases of fatal foetal abnormality. Laws passed by states that protect abortion rights. Montana`s legislative referendum 131 — which was defeated by 52.6 percent to 47.4 percent, according to The Associated Press — would have required doctors to provide life-saving medical care to „born alive“ infants at every stage of development. And while abortion is still illegal in Kentucky, voters rejected the amendment to the state constitution to say it doesn`t include abortion rights. Abortion is legal in Colorado. The parents or guardians of minors must be informed before the procedure.
[9] On Election Day 2022, Kentucky voters rejected a referendum that would have amended the state constitution to say it did not include abortion rights or state funding for abortion. Abortion in Kentucky remains illegal from the moment of fertilization, with a few exceptions. Senate President Matt Huffman, a Republican from Lima, said residents seeking abortions in other states would not be prosecuted. „If someone goes to New York to have an abortion, we won`t know and we won`t be able to stop them,“ Huffman told USA Today. The following states have or have had initiatives regarding abortion. The legislative approach to the Fetal Heart Rhythm Act gained momentum in 2018 and 2019. Following the Supreme Court decision, Missouri invoked a trigger law that bans all abortions in the state, with one exception when the mother`s life is at stake, but not in cases of rape or incest. The law makes abortion a Class B felony, with a possible prison sentence of five to 15 years. Abortion providers can also suspend or revoke their medical license. The right to abortion was enshrined in law in 2020 with the passage of DC 23-90, which also prohibits discrimination against medical professionals who perform or intend to perform abortions. Abortion in California is legal until fetal viability. On August 29, 2014, U.S.
District Judge Lee Yeakel struck down two provisions of Texas` anti-abortion law, House Bill 2, which was set to take effect on September 1, as unconstitutional. The order would have closed a dozen abortion clinics, leaving only eight locations in Texas to get a legal abortion, all in major cities. Judge Lee Yeakel ruled that the state`s regulation was unconstitutional and unduly burdened women, especially poor and rural women living in West Texas and the Rio Grande Valley. [70] The legal challenge to the law eventually reached the Supreme Court in Whole Woman`s Health v. Hellerstedt (2016), who ruled that the law was unconstitutional, placed his burden on requiring abortion doctors to have admitting privileges at a local hospital within 30 miles of the center in order to deny a woman`s right to an abortion by Roe v.
