Abortion access in a post-Roe America

On June 24, the U.S. Supreme Court, in a 6-3 decision, overturned the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that recognized a woman's constitutional right to an abortion and legalized it nationwide. These 22 states are now primed to outlaw the procedure under existing laws or constitutional amendments that heavily restrict access. Some bans will take effect immediately and others in the weeks and months ahead.

South Dakota, Louisiana and Kentucky have “trigger” bans in place to immediately outlaw abortion once Roe is overturned. Penalties for people who provide or attempt to provide a woman an abortion range from being charged with a felony to fines of up to $100,000 and up to 10 years in prison. Oklahoma approved an outright ban prior to Roe being overturned, which will continue without contest.

No further action is required. Of the seven states with bans that take effect immediately or 30 days after Roe was overturned, only Idaho has an exception for pregnancies resulting from rape or incest.

These six states have a trigger ban that takes effect after an official certifies that all or part of Roe v. Wade has been overturned. This certification process could be rapid, taking only hours or a couple of days. Oklahoma also has this type of trigger ban but a total ban has already been approved in that state.