Abortion Bans Temporarily Blocked in Several States

As expected, following the United States Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade and end all federal protections for abortion, battles are being waged in state courts over the right to abortions, and to date, more than 20 states have moved to either ban or severely restrict abortion. The resulting chaos now playing out in state courts makes it difficult for providers, drug companies, pharmacies and patients alike to sort out what the status of abortion is in each state, so we have outlined here four of the most recent developments at the state level in the hopes of providing more clarity. Wyoming, Iowa, Oklahoma and South Carolina have now joined Indiana and Ohio in effectively blocking abortion bans in those states, at least temporarily.

Wyoming

Wyoming judge, Melissa Owens, issued a restraining order on June 22, 2023, temporarily blocking a state law passed in March of 2023 and scheduled to go into effect July 1, 2023, banning all abortion medications. Wyoming is the first state to enact a separate law which focuses on medication abortion alone.  Judge Owen previously held that another law banning abortion wherein it stated that since abortion was not ”healthcare” it was not a constitutional right.  Judge Owens held that it was unconstitutional for the government to substitute its judgment for the judgment of women.  Owens in her July decision found that a 2012 state constitutional amendment guaranteeing the right to make one's own health care decisions could allow abortion.

Iowa

On June 16, 2023, the Iowa Supreme Court leaves abortion legal through twenty weeks by refusing to vacate a lower court permanent injunction against a 2018 Iowa law that would have banned abortion after six weeks.  

Oklahoma

On May 31, 2023, the Oklahoma Supreme Court held that two laws that ban abortion are unconstitutional if they deny an abortion when necessary to save the life of the mother. Abortions have been illegal in Oklahoma since 1910 (going back into effect after Dobbs), unless they are necessary to save the life of the mother.  According to the Justices, the two new laws, which permitted private citizens to enforce the law against abortion, narrowed the exceptions relating to the constitutional right to perform an abortion if it is to save the life of the mother.  The Justices maintained that a woman has a constitutional right to end a pregnancy to save her life without specifying the need for a medical emergency. 

South Carolina

On May 26, 2023, Judge Clifton Newman blocked a new South Carolina law that would have banned abortions after six weeks, restoring the existing law that allows abortion up to twenty-two weeks.  The Court held that the six-week ban violated a provision in the state constitution, which says that “the right of people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures and unreasonable invasions of privacy shall not be violated.”

As new developments arise, we will continue to update our Dobbs Decision Resource Center.  In the meantime, please contact one of the lawyers in Shipman’s Health Law practice group if you have questions about this ever-changing legal landscape.