With just over a month since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the 1973 ruling that gave women the right to have abortions, at least seven states have imposed near-total bans on such procedures, and more bans are expected in the coming months.
The Supreme Court’s June 24 ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization gave states permission to impose laws severely limiting or restricting abortion access and already made sweeping impacts in states where lawmakers seek to curtail access to such procedures. Of the seven states with bans in place, Alabama, Arkansas, Missouri, and South Dakota have no exception for rape or incest, while Mississippi includes an exception for rape but not incest.
Wisconsin’s near-total ban on abortion is likely one of the vaguest and most complicated due to a lawsuit filed by Gov. Tony Evers and Attorney General Josh Kaul, both Democrats, who sued to block a 173-year-old law banning the practice.
Kaul said his lawsuit argues there was a “series of laws” recently passed in the state that is “inconsistent” with the 1849 law on the books, according to an interview with PBS Wisconsin on July 1.
While Wisconsin’s Democratic leaders have challenged the law along with several county district attorneys who say they will not enforce the law, major providers such as Planned Parenthood are working under the assumption it is already in effect and have temporarily stopped abortion procedures.
As for Oklahoma’s near-total ban, the law prohibits abortion at the point following fertilization, though it provides exceptions for rape or incest.
Although Texas served as a springboard for other states to pass restrictions following the Supreme Court allowing its six-week ban on abortion after fetal cardiac activity detection to take effect in September, at least some abortions remain legal until the state’s “trigger” law takes effect. A bill that creates criminal penalties for providers who perform or aid abortions at all stages of pregnancy is slated to take effect in the coming weeks without exceptions for rape or incest.
The impact of these bans creates a chilling effect on abortion providers’ ability to operate. Nearly 8,000 of 18,648 known abortion clinics are likely unable to perform their full practice because of restrictions in a dozen states, according to an analysis of the 2021 Myers Abortion Facility Database.
For example, 402 clinics out of the 8,000 that have been inhibited by state laws are located in Florida, a state that does not completely outlaw abortion procedures but bans them after 15 weeks of gestation.
Looking ahead, nearly half of the states in the nation are expected to permit abortion bans or other limits on procedures because numerous laws are tied up in litigation battles in courtrooms across the country.
Some other states have imposed six-week abortion bans similar to Texas’s law, including Georgia, Ohio, South Carolina, and Tennessee. Abortion rights advocates argue that these measures are similar in stringency to near-total bans due to most pregnancies being difficult to detect during this stage of the first trimester.
And at least 12 states not mentioned here have pre-viability gestational age restrictions, ranging from 15 to 22 weeks.
States with bans that have been blocked in court include Georgia, Louisiana, Utah, and Kentucky. Additionally, Arizona, Idaho, North Dakota, and Wyoming are expected to impose restrictions on abortion procedures later this summer.
Arizona’s ban status is unclear despite a recent law banning abortion after 15 weeks, which is slated to take effect in September. The state also has a near-total ban on abortion from a 1901 law that is still on the books, which recently prompted Arizona’s attorney general to file a motion to lift an injunction against enforcing it.
In Michigan, abortion is legal despite a near-total ban from 1931 still existing in the Michigan Constitution. A judge blocked enforcement of the ban, but it was appealed. A ballot measure for a constitutional amendment affirming a right to “reproductive freedom” will show up on ballots in the state this fall.
On the other hand, 16 states and Washington, D.C., have expanded protections for abortion and access amid the fallout from Roe’s overturning. Most of these states protect abortion before the point of fetal viability, which is typically around 23-24 weeks.
