In the 1973 case of Roe vs. Wade, our Supreme Court ruled it is a woman's right to have an abortion until the time a fetus is viable. It defined viability as the ability of a fetus to live outside the womb. The Court said this usually occurs between 24 and 28 weeks after conception. Between 1973 and 2008, nearly 50 million American fetuses were legally aborted. About 90% of these abortions were performed during the first trimester, or prior to the 13th week of gestation. The main reasons women give for having an abortion included their inability to afford a child (75%) and that having a baby would interfere with school or work (75%). Health problems were responsible for 12% of these decisions and about 1% of women who chose to end their pregnancy reported they were the survivors of rape. There were 623,471 abortions reported in 2016. Despite constitutional protections, over the past few years, anti-abortion state lawmakers have passed hundreds of restrictive laws making abortion extremely difficult to access for many women.

Pro-life advocates want all abortions outlawed because Row vs. Wade does not take into account the welfare of the unborn. They claim life begins at conception and aborting a fetus is comparable to murdering a person. Pro-choice advocates claim life does not begin until very late in gestation, or even until birth. They do not believe abortion takes the life of a person. They say only a woman knows if she is a ready to become a parent and that abortion helps ensure the birth of children who are wanted. Pro-life and pro-choice advocates also disagree as to whether a woman's right to make this decision is protected by the Constitution.

Texas has recently passed a state law which prohibits abortion after the sixth week of gestation. Critics say a woman often doesn’t even know she is pregnant at this point. This law is now being introduced in other state legislatures. Enforcement of this statute is delegated to civilians, who without standing, are encouraged to file civil lawsuits against those who performed, funded or aided women who break this law. Our Supreme Court has allowed this law to stand despite nearly 50 years of federal precedents and previous Supreme Court decisions. Critics say this has effectively gutted the Row vs. Wade decision and will deny abortion services to millions of American women. They say we need to codify a woman’s right to choose into federal law.

Pending Legislation S.1975 - Women’s Health Protection Act of 2021
Sponsor: Sen. Richard Blumenthal (CT)
Status: Senate Committee on the Judiciary
Chair: Sen. Dick Durban (IL)

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