Thanks to specifically designed “trigger laws” and previous bans that were automatically reinstated after Friday’s decision, abortion was instantly illegal in 18 US states as soon as Roe v. Wade was reversed.
In the event that the highly expected Roe v. Wade decision was reversed, thirteen states drafted trigger laws that would instantly make abortions illegal.
They are: Wyoming, Arkansas, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Dakota, Oklahoma, and South Dakota.
Since 1973’s Roe decision, which automatically reinstated previous legislation that had been overturned, five additional states have similarly outlawed abortions.
Two of those five states—Michigan and Wisconsin—are led by Democrats.
Both Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer have fought to get such prohibitions overturned in court. However, they are still there right now.
Alabama, Arizona, and West Virginia are other states that have recently adopted historic bans.
New anti-abortion measures are also expected to be adopted in eight more states. Abortion after six weeks was attempted to be outlawed in Georgia, South Carolina, and Iowa.
Although those laws were declared unlawful, they will probably be reviewed now that Roe is over. Additionally, initiatives to outlaw or restrict terminations are being developed in Florida, Indiana, Montana, and Nebraska.
Following Friday’s announcement that Roe v. Wade had been overturned by the US Supreme Court, the laws that prohibit abortion in more than half of US states are now expected to go into effect.
The Supreme Court voted to overturn the historic 1973 decision that made abortion lawful in the United States, according to a draft opinion that was leaked and published by POLITICO last month. The draft opinion was written by Samuel Alito.
“Roe was egregiously incorrect from the start,” Alito said, in part. The judge, who was appointed by George W. Bush, continues by saying that the decision on abortion should be left up to the “people’s elected representatives.”
In February 2022, the opinion was written.
Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett, all selected by Republicans, joined Alito in voting against him.
States all throughout the nation have also begun setting the stage for what will happen once the more than 40-year-old law is overturned.
At least 22 states have laws that would take effect once the decision is formally ratified, according to the pro-reproductive rights organization The Guttmacher Institute.
The group also named four other states that it anticipates will enact new abortion restrictions in the near future, bringing the total number of states that seem likely to outlaw the procedures to 26.
Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming are the 18 states with abortion laws that are already almost completely outlawed.
Abortions after six weeks are also prohibited by law in Georgia, Iowa, Ohio, and South Carolina.
Those six-week prohibitions have been deemed unconstitutional as of the time of writing.
The Washington Post reported that Republican politicians were conspiring with pro-life campaigners for a federal ban on abortions if Roe was overturned and the GOP took back the house on the same day that the Alito ruling was made public.
The institute also claims that when Roe v. Wade is reversed, legislation will likely be passed in four additional states: Florida, Indiana, Montana, and Nebraska.
A 15-week abortion ban is already in place in Florida, and it will take effect in July 2022. Rape and incest cases are not exempt from the law in any way. If the patient’s health is in jeopardy, there is an exemption.
“Life is a sacred gift worthy of our protection,” the governor said in a statement after putting the law into action. “I am happy to sign this outstanding piece of legislation, which marks the most important protections for life in the state’s modern history.”
Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Michigan, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Texas, West Virginia and Wisconsin’s bans all have pre-Roe v Wade laws that became unenforceable after the Supreme Court’s 1973 decision – that would kick into effect if the federal legal precedent established in Roe were overturned.
Alabama, Arizona, Michigan, Mississippi, Oklahoma, West Virginia and Wisconsin’s laws allow for abortions if the patient’s life is in risk.
Alabama also permits for abortions if order to safeguard the health of the patient.
Arkansas, Oklahoma, Mississippi and Texas have further bans that will come into effect if the statute was reversed. These were passed post-Roe v Wade.
They’re joined by Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, North Dakota, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah and Wyoming, in passing such laws.
The Oklahoma legislature just passed a six-week abortion ban, similar to Texas, in April 2022. Similar to the Texas law, it provides for the state to launch lawsuits against individuals who are discovered to have enabled someone to seek an abortion after the six-week timeframe.
Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt said in September 2021 tweet, ‘I told Oklahomans I would sign every piece of pro-life legislation that came across my desk.’
The states that will limit abortions depending on the amount of time a patient has been pregnant include Arkansas, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, North Dakota and Ohio.
There are four states that have laws that feel that abortion is not a constitutionally protected right are Alabama, Louisiana, Texas and West Virginia.
On the other end of the spectrum, legislation protecting a person’s right to an abortion is present in 16 states and the District of Columbia.
The Guttmacher report highlights that there are over 40 million women who live in states with legislation considered unfavorable to those seeking abortions.