(NewsSpace.com) – The topic of abortion has always been controversial, but after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, returning the rights to states, it ignited into a firestorm. Pro-choice advocates really made their voices heard in 2023, and it doesn’t seem as though it will die down any time soon.
Texas is one of the states that enacted severe abortion restrictions following the SCOTUS decision. In fact, it sought to make it a criminal act, threatening doctors who performed the procedure with significant jail time, hefty fines, and a revocation of their license. While there are minimal exceptions, one woman who asked the court’s permission to have the procedure was denied, even though it could threaten her future fertility and the baby has little to no chance of survival. Kate Cox has had little success, but she is persisting with her claim to challenge Texas’ medical exception.
The SCOTUS decision also deepened a divide in the United States, one between blue and red states that sought to offer their constituents protection, one way or another. Red states began enacting abortion bans immediately. Blue states and Washington, DC, went in the opposite direction and preserved access to the procedure with little or no restrictions. Some states, like Ohio, left it up to voters to make their voices heard and offered it as a ballot measure. Overwhelmingly, they voted in favor of abortion rights.
Yet, despite the overturning of the landmark SCOTUS case and the restrictions many states placed on women wanting to terminate, more abortions happened in 2023 following the Dobbs decision. According to NPR, there were 2,200 more terminations than the year prior, when Roe v. Wade was in effect.
The issue of abortion isn’t one that’s likely to die out soon. Now, there’s another case making its way in front of the SCOTUS justices, this time on the abortion pill, mifepristone. The decision is likely to come out in the summer, before the justices break, meaning it could very well be a driving factor in the outcome of the 2024 presidential election.
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