South Carolina’s Republican governor, Henry McMaster, signed a bill Thursday banning abortion in the state after six weeks of pregnancy. The new law allows exceptions for fatal fetal abnormalities, when the mother’s life and health are at risk. Victims of rape or incest can have an abortion for up to twelve weeks if they have filed a police report and received a statement from two doctors.
South Carolina’s is just the latest in a series of strict abortion restrictions implemented by individual states since Roe v. Wade was overturned by the Supreme Court last summer.
Prior to the Supreme Court’s ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization in June 2022, 18 Republican states in the South and West, such as Alabama, Idaho, Mississippi and South Dakota, passed so-called “trigger laws” banning abortion. at the time the court ruled.
In recent months, eight other Republican-led states have passed new laws banning abortion at various stages of pregnancy.
Here’s a guide to the new abortion restrictions states have implemented since last summer:
South Carolina
The state had a 2021 trigger law that banned abortion after heart activity can be detected in a fetus, around six weeks of pregnancy, but the state Supreme Court struck down that law in January, saying it violated privacy rights in the state constitution. This made abortion legal until 22 weeks of pregnancy. Abortion providers in the state immediately filed suit against the law in state court, asking the court to enter a temporary restraining order preventing the law’s implementation. On Friday, a South Carolina judge granted abortion providers’ request to block a newly enacted six-week abortion ban while a legal battle continues.
Nebraska
In May, Republican lawmakers in Nebraska’s unicameral legislature amended a bill that would ban gender-affirming surgery for anyone under the age of 19 and would impose new rules limiting access to hormone therapy and puberty-blocking drugs for trans youth to also ban abortions after 12 weeks. then pass the measure. It was then signed into law by Republican Nebraska Governor Jim Pillen. There are exceptions for rape, incest and when the mother’s life is in danger. Nebraska previously banned abortion after 20 weeks of pregnancy. An attempt in April to ban abortion after six weeks failed by one vote.
North Carolina
The state House and Senate overrode the governor’s veto on a party-line vote, with Republicans gaining a three-fifths majority in both chambers after a Democratic state representative switched parties. State law previously banned nearly all abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, and Cooper tried unsuccessfully last week to convince at least one Republican to side with him and uphold his veto. North Carolina law previously banned almost all abortions after 20 weeks.
North Dakota
North Dakota passed a law on April 24 that almost completely bans abortion, with exceptions in the first six weeks of pregnancy for cases of rape, incest and medical emergencies. After six weeks, only certain medical emergencies, such as ectopic pregnancies, would qualify for legal abortions. In March, a previous abortion ban in North Dakota that was almost as far-reaching was temporarily suspended by the state Supreme Court while a legal battle continues. There are no more abortion clinics in North Dakota. After Roe v. Wade was overturned, the state’s only abortion clinic moved its operations to Moorhead, Minnesota.
Florida
A law signed in April. 14 by Governor Ron DeSantis would ban abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, except for victims of rape or incest or for women whose health is at risk. Those seeking one of these exceptions would also be required to provide evidence. The new law will only take effect if the existing 15-week ban is upheld by the state Supreme Court in a current legal battle. The state’s highest court has a conservative majority.
Indiana
The Hoosier state became the first in the nation to enact new abortion restrictions after the Dobbs decision. In August 2022, Governor Eric Holcomb, a Republican, signed a bill banning abortion, with limited exceptions. Abortions are now allowed in Indiana only in cases of rape and incest during the first ten weeks of pregnancy, to protect the life or physical health of the pregnant woman, or if a fetus is diagnosed with a fatal abnormality. Doctors who perform illegal abortions should be stripped of their medical licenses. Abortions can also now only be performed in hospitals or hospital-owned outpatient clinics – abortion clinics are no longer legally able to operate in the state. However, enforcement of the new law has been blocked pending the outcome of legal challenges. The Indiana Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case in January.
West Virginia
Last September, Republican Governor Jim Justice of West Virginia signed a law banning abortion, except in cases of rape or incest, during a pregnancy period of up to eight weeks for adults and 14 weeks for minors. It allows abortions of a non-viable fetus or embryo, and when there is a medical emergency or ectopic pregnancy. Abortion providers who do not fall under these exceptions risk a prison sentence of up to ten years.
Wyoming
In March, Wyoming became the first state to ban abortions via oral medications, which make up the majority of abortions nationwide. The state already had a complete abortion ban on the books, but is currently barred by a court order from enforcing the ban. The same abortion pill is at the center of federal lawsuits, as a Trump-appointed federal judge in Texas recently rejected the drug’s approval by the FDA.
Idaho
Earlier this month, Idaho became the first state to criminalize helping a minor get an abortion in another state, with those convicted of violating the law facing a prison sentence of two to five years. The law allows the attorney general to prosecute a case if local prosecutors refuse to do so. It also allows family members of a pregnant child or the person who impregnated her to file lawsuits against medical professionals who provide her with abortion care, for damages of up to $20,000.
