BOSTON, USA, June 27 (IPS) – After half a century, America’s constitutional right to abortion has been overturned by the Supreme Court. Judgment in Dobbs sues Jackson Women’s Health Organization – transmitted on June 24, 2022 – had far-reaching consequences. The conversation asked Nicole Huberfeld and Linda C. McClainhealth and constitutional law experts at Boston University, to explain what just happened and what happens next.
What has the Supreme Court ruled?
The Supreme Court decided by a 6-3 majority to uphold the moratorium on abortion after 15 weeks of a Mississippi pregnancy. In doing so, the majority opinion reversed two key decisions protecting access to abortion: 1973 Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Caseydecided in 1992.
The idea, written by Justice Samuel Alito, states that the Constitution makes no mention of abortion. Nor does the Constitution guarantee abortion rights through another right, liberty.
Opinion refutes Roe and Casey’s argument that constitutional liberties include an individual privacy in choosing abortion, in the same way it protects other decisions regarding intimate sexual behavior, such as contraception and marriage. In view, abortion is “fundamentally different” because it destroys the life of the fetus.
The court’s narrow approach to the concept of constitutional liberty contrasts with the broader view the court took in the earlier Casey ruling, as well as in a landmark marriage equality case. turning point, 2015 Obergefell v. Hodges. But the majority said that nothing affected the right of same-sex couples to marry.
Alito’s comments also refute the legal principle of “determined stare, ”Or follow precedent. Abortion rights advocates argue that Casey and Roe’s rulings should be upheld as, at the words of judgment Caseyreproductive rights that allow women to “take an equal part in the economic and social life of the Nation.”
Chief Justice John Roberts concurred with the view that Mississippi’s law was constitutional, but disagreed with the majority opinion that Roe and Casey should be overruled.
This ruling does not mean that abortion is banned nationwide. play in state legislaturesthere, Alito notes, women “are not without suffrage or political power.”
States will only be allowed to regulate or ban abortion for so-called “reasonable basis“Evaluation – this is a weaker standard than” by Caseyexcessive burden” test. Under Casey’s overburden test, states have been prevented from enacting restrictions that significantly hinder the path of those seeking abortions. Now, abortion bans pregnancy will be considered legal as long as there is “reasonable basis” for the legislature to believe that the law serves the legitimate interest of the state.
In a heated debate, Justices Stephen Breyer, Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor misled the court’s narrow approach to liberties and challenged the court’s disregard for even decisions. staring as well as the impact of Roe and Casey abuse on the lives of women in the United States. Dissidents said the impact of the decision would be “a reduction in women’s rights and their free and equal citizenship.” They also expressed deep concern about the impact of the ruling on poor women’s access to abortion services in the United States.
How does this decision fit with the history of reproductive rights in the United States?
This is a huge moment. The court’s ruling did what reproductive rights advocates had feared for decades: It stripped away the constitutional right to privacy that protects access to abortion.
This decision has been in the making for decades. Thirty years ago, when Casey was contested, many legal experts thought that the court ready to overcome Roe. The court then had eight judges appointed by Republican presidents, some of whom showed a willingness to overcome dissenting opinions.
Instead, Republican appointees Anthony Kennedy, Sandra Day O’Connor and David Souter supported Roe. They modified its framework to allow more state regulation throughout pregnancy and weakened the testing of those laws. Under Roe’s Test “strict supervision”, any restrictions on privacy for access to abortion must be “restricted” to augment the “attractive” interests of the state. But Casey’s “excessive burden” test gave states more latitude to regulate abortion.
Even before Casey’s decision, opponents of abortion in Congress greatly restricted access for poor women and military members by restrict the use of federal funds to pay for abortion services.
In recent years, states have imposed restrictions on abortion that would not have passed Roe’s tougher “rigorous” test. Despite this, many state restrictions have been rescinded in federal courts under excessive burden testing, including bans on pre-viability abortions and so-called “TRAPs”. ” – targeted regulation by abortion providers – laws that make it harder to keep clinics open.
President Donald Trump pledged to appoint “closer” justices to the federal courts – and the appointment of three conservative justices by the Supreme Court – finally came true target of legal abortion opponents: the Roe and Casey extremists.
What happens next?
Even before Dobbs, access to abortion was limited by a patchwork of laws across the United States. Republican states have more restrictive laws than Democratic states, with those living in the Midwest and South subject to the strongest restrictions.
13 states have the so-called “activation law”, This significantly limits access to abortion. These will soon go into effect now that the Supreme Court has overturned Roe and Casey, requiring only certification by the state attorney general or other action by a state official.
Nine states there was a rule before Roe was never taken out of the book significantly restrict or prohibit access to abortion. Overall, nearly half of states will restrict access to abortion through a variety of measures such as banning abortions at six weeks’ gestation – before many women even know they are pregnant – and limiting possible reasons. abortion occurs, such as banning abortion in the case of fetal malformations.
Meanwhile, 16 states and the District of Columbia protect the right to access abortion in various ways, such as state statutes, constitutional amendments, or state Supreme Court decisions.
No state currently restricts access to abortion that criminalizes the act of a pregnant woman. Instead, they threaten healthcare providers with civil or criminal action, including the loss of their medical license.
Some states are create a “safe haven”“A place where people can go to legally get an abortion. People have traveled to states like Massachusetts from states with high restrictions.
The court’s decision could also prompt federal action.
The House of Representatives passed The Women’s Health Protection Act, which protects health care providers and pregnant women who want abortions, but Senate Republicans blocked the bill from being put to a vote. Congress could also reconsider providing limited Medicaid payments for abortions, but such federal legislation is unlikely to succeed either.
President Joe Biden could use executive power to direct federal agencies to review existing regulations to ensure that access to abortion continues in as many places as possible. Congressional Republicans can Check the country on the nationwide abortion ban. While such efforts have the potential to fail, they can cause embarrassment for already vulnerable people.
What does this mean for people in the US seeking abortions?
Unplanned pregnancies and abortions are more common among poor women and women of color, both in the US and around the world.
Research shows that people have abortions whether it’s legal or not, but in countries where abortion is restricted or outlawed, women are more likely to suffer negative health outcomes, such as infection, excessive bleeding, and uterine perforation. Those who must have a full-term pregnancy are more likely to have a pregnancy-related death.
The state-by-state access to abortion as a result of this decision means more people will have to travel further to get an abortion. And the gap will mean fewer people having abortions, especially lower-income women – a fact that The Supreme Court was recognized by the government in 2016.
But since 2020Medical abortion – the two-pill regimen of mifepristone and misoprostol – is the most common method of termination of pregnancy in the United States. Driving the Food and Drug Administration to make medical abortion more common by allowing doctors to prescribe drugs through telemedicine and allowing medication to be mailed without in-person consultation.
Many states that restrict access to abortion are also trying to prevent medical abortions. But stopping telehealth providers from mailing drugs will be a challenge. Furthermore, because the FDA has approved this regimen, states will conflict with federal law, creating a conflict that could lead to more lawsuits.
The Supreme Court’s revocation of a 50-year-recognized right places the United States in a minority of countries, most of which are moving toward liberalization. However, even though abortion is considered by many to be essential health careThe culture war is sure to continue.
Linda C. McClainProfessor of Law, Boston University and Nicole HuberfeldEdward R. Utley Professor of Health Law and Professor of Law, Boston University
This article was republished from Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read original article.
© Inter Press Service (2022) – All rights reservedOrigin: Inter Press Service
