U.S. Supreme Court overturns right to abortion in landmark decision

The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that established abortion as a constitutional right. Shortly after the court’s decision was announced, Attorney General Eric Schmitt enacted Missouri’s trigger law that effectively outlaws abortion in the state. The opinion by six of the Court’s nine justices will allow each state to set its own abortion laws, leading to a patchwork of access throughout the country. The result is expected to lead to an uptick in the number of women traveling for abortions or unsafe abortions in states where the medical procedure will now be banned or heavily restricted. “The Constitution does not confer a right to abortion; Roe and Casey are overruled; and the authority to regulate abortion is returned to the people and their elected representatives,” the justices wrote. Justices Stephen Breyer, Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor wrote the dissent in the case. “With sorrow — for this Court, but more, for the many millions of American women who have today lost a fundamental constitutional protection — we dissent,” it began Twenty-two states have laws that would restrict when and how a patient can terminate a pregnancy, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive health and rights organization. Arizona, Michigan, North Carolina and Wisconsin are among the 10 states that have pre-Roe abortion bans that will now take effect. Thirteen states — including Idaho, Louisiana, Missouri and Tennessee — have laws enacted since Roe that will be “triggered” by the court’s decision. A dozen states, including Maine, Maryland, Nevada and Washington, have laws that would protect abortion access up to the point of viability, usually 22 to 24 weeks into a pregnancy. Colorado, the District of Columbia, New Jersey, Oregon and Vermont have laws that protect abortion access throughout a pregnancy, according to the Guttmacher Institute.
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(Missouri Independent) – The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that established abortion as a constitutional right.

Shortly after the court’s decision was announced, Attorney General Eric Schmitt enacted Missouri’s trigger law that effectively outlaws abortion in the state.

The opinion by six of the Court’s nine justices will allow each state to set its own abortion laws, leading to a patchwork of access throughout the country. The result is expected to lead to an uptick in the number of women traveling for abortions or unsafe abortions in states where the medical procedure will now be banned or heavily restricted.

“The Constitution does not confer a right to abortion; Roe and Casey are overruled, and the authority to regulate abortion is returned to the people and their elected representatives,” the justices wrote.

Justices Stephen Breyer, Elena Kagan, and Sonia Sotomayor wrote the dissent in the case.

“With sorrow — for this Court, but more, for the many millions of American women who have today lost a fundamental constitutional protection — we dissent,” it began

Twenty-two states have laws that would restrict when and how a patient can terminate a pregnancy, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive health, and rights organization.

Arizona, Michigan, North Carolina, and Wisconsin are among the 10 states that have pre-Roe abortion bans that will now take effect. Thirteen states — including Idaho, Louisiana, Missouri, and Tennessee — have laws enacted since Roe that will be “triggered” by the court’s decision.

A dozen states, including Maine, Maryland, Nevada, and Washington, have laws that would protect abortion access up to the point of viability, usually 22 to 24 weeks into a pregnancy.

Colorado, the District of Columbia, New Jersey, Oregon, and Vermont have laws that protect abortion access throughout pregnancy, according to the Guttmacher Institute.


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Jennifer Shutt

https://missouriindependent.com/

Jennifer covers the nation’s capital as a senior reporter for States Newsroom. Her coverage areas include congressional policy, politics, and legal challenges with a focus on health care, unemployment, housing, and aid to families. Before joining States Newsroom, Jennifer covered Congress for CQ Roll Call for more than six years. As a budget and appropriations reporter, she tracked the annual federal funding process as well as disaster aid and COVID-19 spending. Jennifer is originally from northern Pennsylvania and holds degrees in journalism and political science from Penn State University. After graduating, she began her journalism career as a reporter for The Daily Times in Maryland where she covered local and state government. Jennifer then moved to Washington, D.C. to work as a web producer at Politico.