BANS ON ABORTION ARE UNCONSTITUTIONAL

Congress’ latest abortion ban attempt is simply another attack on Roe v. Wade

DURHAM, NC—Barely a week after the 45th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision, which legalized abortion in the United States, Congress is rushing to try and pass an unconstitutional abortion ban.

"The proposed 20-week abortion ban is another arbitrary restriction based on political ideology, not medial science or the needs of pregnant patients making their own reproductive health decisions,” said Tara Romano, Executive Director of NARAL Pro-Choice North Carolina. "With 7 in 10 Americans supporting access to safe and legal abortion, no matter their personal feelings, this extremist attempt to challenge the precedent of Roe v. Wade is out-of-touch, and ultimately dangerous."

As recently as June 2016 in their Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt decision, the U.S. Supreme Court reaffirmed the constitutional right to access abortion without medically unnecessary obstacles obstructing access to this safe and legal procedure. However, instead of working to pass fair legislation to assist Dreamers, preventing a government shutdown, investigating governmental corruption, or focusing on job creation, the U.S. Senate GOP is teeing up a vote this week that would institute a federal 20-week abortion ban preventing access to abortion 20 weeks into a pregnancy.

"People may seek an abortion after the twentieth week of pregnancy for any number of reasons,” said Romano, "including having to spend time gathering funds for the procedure; not receiving a diagnosis until 20 weeks into their pregnancy that the fetus will not survive after birth, because such medical tests cannot be performed till at or around 20 weeks; to numerous medically unnecessary barriers—from the federal Hyde Amendment that enacted insurance bans on coverage for an abortion to North Carolina’s arbitrary and medically unnecessary 72-hour waiting period.”

Restricting access to abortion does nothing to protect health and safety—bans such as this simply serve to obstruct access to a constitutional right and restrict individuals’ ability to control their own bodily autonomy and impede their right to determine what is best for them regarding their personal medical decisions.