Ipas > Time for a checkup: United States abortion laws

Time for a checkup: United States abortion laws

January 8, 2008

photo by Richard Lord

In the 35 years since the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court legalized abortion for all American women in Roe v. Wade, states have constructed myriad laws regulating when and how women can obtain an abortion. Many of these laws have similarities — indeed, 39 states require that abortions be performed by licensed physicians and 33 states ban public funding for abortion, unless the woman’s life is in danger. And almost every state — 46 in total — allows individual physicians to refuse to perform abortions.

But the replacement of Justice Sandra Day O’Connor with Samuel Alito, an opponent to the decision of Roe v. Wade, has provoked changes in state abortion laws. These laws could significantly change the abortion landscape if the Court’s anti-choice makeup grows with the appointment of another socially conservative justice. Some state policymakers have gladly ridden the conservative wave and passed regulations that would be enacted if Roe v. Wade is overturned. In fact, 20 states have laws that would further restrict abortion if this scenario plays out; four states would automatically ban all abortions. On the other hand, some states have opted to protect a woman’s right to choose. According to NARAL Pro-Choice America, 16 states have protections that go further than the federal constitution.

“The importance of Roe v. Wade is underscored by the fanatical movement to ban abortion at the state level. Unless we ensure that the federal government protects the right to abortion for all American women, the rights of some will be subjugated to the beliefs of zealots operating in our state capitols,” says Patty Skuster, JD, Ipas policy associate.

Below is a snapshot of current state laws regulating abortion, based largely on recent data from the Guttmacher Institute:

States typically fund abortion only in narrow circumstances, as guided by the 1977 Hyde Amendment, which prohibits federal funding for abortion except in cases of rape, incest or threat to the mother’s life and influences state funding under joint federal-state Medicaid programs. Seventeen states fund all or most medically necessary abortions; 32 provide funding for abortion only in cases of life endangerment, rape or incest. A handful of these states allow exceptions if there is severe fetal abnormality. In violation of federal law, South Dakota only funds abortions when a mother’s life is in danger.
Twenty-four states require a waiting period before an abortion can be performed — most say 24 hours.
Thirty-five states require that parents of minors seeking an abortion give consent or at least be notified. In Minnesota, Mississippi and North Dakota, both parents must give consent or be notified.
Seven states — California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Nevada and Washington — have laws that will protect a woman’s right to choose an abortion should Roe v. Wade be overturned.
Five states have enacted or introduced legislation that will outlaw abortion, except in cases of life endangerment, in the absence of Roe v. Wade: Louisiana, Mississippi, North Dakota, South Dakota and Utah.
Four states — Idaho, Kentucky, Missouri and North Dakota — prohibit private insurers from covering abortions, except in cases where the mother’s life is at risk. Colorado and Kentucky don’t provide coverage for abortion to state employees; nine other states restrict insurance coverage of abortion for state employees to cases of life endangerment, rape or incest, or fetal abnormality.
Fifteen states plus the District of Columbia have laws that prohibit certain activities aimed at abortion providers and that protect clinic access.

For more detailed state information, visit Mapping Our Rights, a collaborative project made possible by Ipas, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (NGLTF) and the SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Health Collective.

For more information, contact:
Kirsten Sherk
Senior Associate, Media Relations
e-mail: sherkk@ipas.org
phone: 919.960.5612
fax: 919.929.0258