Abortion Ban

14 Aug

She Wasn’t Able to Get an Abortion. Now She’s a Mom. Soon She’ll Start 7th Grade. 

MollyUnited States, , , ,
"Ashley just had a baby. She’s sitting on the couch in a relative’s apartment in Clarksdale, Miss., wearing camo-print leggings and fiddling with the plastic hospital bracelets still on her wrists. It’s August and pushing 90 degrees, which means the brown patterned curtains are drawn, the air conditioner is on high, and the room feels like a hiding place. Peanut, the baby boy she delivered two days earlier, is asleep in a car seat at her feet, dressed in a little blue outfit. Ashley is surrounded by family, but nobody is smiling. One relative silently eats lunch in the kitchen,…
Read More
14 Aug

RFK Jr. backs 15-week federal ban on abortion, then reverses himself

MollyUnited States, , , , ,
"Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Sunday said he would support a federal ban on abortion after the first three months of pregnancy, but his campaign later said he “misunderstood” the question. Speaking to NBC from the Iowa State Fair, Kennedy said, “I believe a decision to abort a child should be up to the women during the first three months of life,” but added: “Once a child is viable, outside the womb, I think then the state has an interest in protecting the child.” He said he would sign a federal ban on abortion after 15 weeks or…
Read More
12 Aug

Nebraska judge allows abortion limits and restrictions on gender-affirming surgery

MollyUnited States, , , , , ,
"A Nebraska judge on Friday rejected an effort to block a ban on abortions after 12 weeks of pregnancy and restrictions on gender-affirming surgery. Lancaster County District Court Judge Lori Maret sided with the state and allowed a law approved by the Nebraska Legislature earlier this year to remain in effect. The law outlaws abortion after 12 weeks of pregnancy with exceptions for rape, incest and to save the life of the mother. As of Oct. 1, it also will prevent people under 19 from receiving gender-affirming surgery and restricts the use of hormone treatments and puberty blockers for minors...."
Read More
12 Aug

Texas questions rights of fetus in prison guard lawsuit despite arguing opposite on abortion

MollyUnited States, , , , ,
"In defending themselves against a lawsuit, Texas officials have argued that an “unborn child” may not have rights under the US constitution, putting them in tension with arguments made by the state’s attorney’s general’s office as well as Republican lawmakers to support restrictions to abortion...."
Read More
11 Aug

Iowa conservatives are pessimistic about the fate of the new 6-week abortion ban

MollyUnited States, , ,
"Just weeks ago, Iowa conservatives lit up with excitement when Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds signed into law a new six-week abortion ban — an event she orchestrated shortly after the state Supreme Court ruled that an earlier six-week ban would remain blocked. But much of the excitement has dimmed amid questions over whether a conservative justice, whose recusal in the first case led to that outcome, will again sit it out. Such a decision could, once more, scramble conservative efforts to keep the strict abortion law in place...."
Read More
10 Aug

Montana voters rejected an anti-abortion measure. State GOP lawmakers passed a similar bill anyway.

MollyUnited States, , , , , , , ,
"In the months following the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision that gave states the power to ban abortion, voters in a half-dozen states spoke on the issue — and, in every case, chose to uphold abortion rights or reject an attempt to restrict them. Most recently, Ohio voters on Tuesday rejected a Republican-led effort to make it more difficult to change that state’s constitution, which would have set a higher bar for an abortion rights ballot initiative this fall. But the will of the electorate didn’t stop Republican lawmakers in one state, Montana, from passing a version of the anti-abortion proposal that voters…
Read More
10 Aug

How Wisconsin’s pre-Civil War abortion ban remained untouched during decades of political battle

MollyUnited States, , , , ,
"Last summer, when the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe vs. Wade, the legality of abortion was sent back to states — immediately reviving Wisconsin's pre-Civil War abortion ban.  Few if any states reverted to laws as old as Wisconsin’s. Over the nearly 50 years the ban was unenforceable, why had lawmakers never revoked it? In some ways, the answer is simple: There was never the political will. And in the years immediately following the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, the political lines when it came to abortion were blurred. It would take nearly a decade for the major parties in Wisconsin,…
Read More
04 Aug

New law to make small change to Texas’ near-total abortion ban

MollyUnited States, , , , ,
"Today, Texas has one of the strictest abortion bans in the country. Under state law, abortions are legal if the patient's life is at risk, but some doctors say that's not clearly defined. State law says doctors who perform abortions could face life in prison and fines of up to $100,000. That’s why Rep. Donna Howard, D-Austin, worked with a bipartisan group of lawmakers to clarify the law. “The purpose of [House Bill] 3058, the new bill, was to ensure that there was an affirmative defense for physicians, that they would not have to be concerned about liability for using their…
Read More
02 Aug

Idaho health care providers can refer patients for abortions out of state, judge rules

MollyUnited States, , , , , , , , , ,
"A federal judge has ruled that it would violate Idaho medical providers’ free speech rights to sanction them for referring patients to out-of-state abortion services, rejecting the state attorney general’s interpretation of Idaho’s abortion ban. Idaho’s law makes it illegal to perform or attempt to perform an abortion, a crime punishable by two to five years in prison. It also makes it unlawful for health care professionals to assist in the provision or attempted provision of one, with the penalty being the suspension or loss of their medical license...."
Read More
01 Aug

Idaho AG can’t prosecute providers for abortion referrals, federal judge orders in injunction

MollyUnited States, , , , , , ,
"A federal judge in Idaho has granted a preliminary injunction barring Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador from taking legal action against medical providers who refer patients across state lines for abortion care and denied Labrador’s request to dismiss the case. U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill issued a 60-page opinion detailing his reasoning for the order on Monday evening. Winmill said the medical providers who sued Labrador established there was a genuine threat of prosecution that resulted in the chilling of their speech, which he called “a well-established concrete injury.” While the case proceeds, no charges can be brought by…
Read More
01 Aug

After yearlong fight, a near-total abortion ban is going into effect in Indiana

MollyUnited States, , , , , , , ,
"A sweeping ban on most abortions is scheduled to take effect today in Indiana. It would prohibit abortions at any point during pregnancy except if the woman's life or health is seriously at risk. Abortion would be permitted before 22 weeks of pregnancy if a "lethal fetal anomaly" is detected, or until 12 weeks of pregnancy in cases of rape or incest. Late Monday, Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers filed a last-minute legal request with the Indiana Supreme Court, asking the justices to rehear their previous legal challenge. The move may delay the law from taking effect by a…
Read More
29 Jul

GOP megadonor pours millions into effort to hinder Ohio abortion amendment

MollyUnited States, , , , , ,
"New campaign finance records show Illinois Republican megadonor Richard Uihlein is funding the bulk of the campaign aimed at thwarting a constitutional amendment on abortion in Ohio.  Ohio is likely the only state this year to have a measure on the ballot to enshrine abortion access into the state constitution, setting up a test case for how the issue may drive voters ahead of the 2024 presidential election. A USA TODAY Network/Suffolk University poll released this week found 58% of Ohioans support a constitutional amendment...."
Read More
26 Jul

Iowa Supreme Court says the block on the state’s strict abortion law can be appealed

MollyUnited States, , , , , , ,
"Gov. Kim Reynolds can proceed with an appeal on a temporary block on the state’s new, restrictive abortion law, the Iowa Supreme Court said Tuesday. Reynolds announced her intentions to appeal last week and said it was “just a matter of time” before lawyers for the state filed the request, which they did Friday. The Iowa Supreme Court had to say whether the request could move forward...."
Read More
25 Jul

Planned Parenthood seeks injunction for two sections of NC abortion law

MollyUnited States, , , , , , , , , , , , ,
"Planned Parenthood and a Duke Health doctor have renewed their request for a preliminary injunction against portions of North Carolina’s new abortion law. Documents filed Monday in U.S. District Court target two pieces of the law that otherwise took effect July 1. Meanwhile, the judge in the case rejected defendants’ request to delay the next hearing in the case. The new law permits abortions through 12 weeks of pregnancy, but blocks the procedure with exceptions afterward. U.S. District Judge Catherine Eagles issued a June 30 order temporarily blocking one portion of the law, labeled the “IUP Documentation Requirement” in court paperwork. That…
Read More
25 Jul

Anti-abortion group seeks to overturn injunction after Tennessee clinic closure

MollyUnited States, , , , , , , ,
"Anti-abortion protesters urged a Sixth Circuit panel on Tuesday to do away with an abortion provider's claims against the group and vacate an order stopping the group from blocking the facility's entrance, calling the matter moot since the clinic shut down last month. The group held a weeklong protest at carafem, which operated until June in Mount Juliet, Tennessee, in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court's June 2022 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. The company behind the clinic sued the anti-abortion group for violations of the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances and in September 2022 won a preliminary injunction.…
Read More
No widgets found. Go to Widget page and add the widget in Offcanvas Sidebar Widget Area.