Indiana Court Temporarily Blocks Abortion Ban SB 1 By Paris Himes
The summer of 2022 undoubtedly became a pivotal moment in US history when, on June 24, the Supreme Court ruled 5 to 4 to overturn Roe v. Wade, the definitive piece of legislation that made abortion access a federal right in the United States. This decision dismantled nearly 50 years of legal abortion protection and cleared the way for individual states to decrease or completely ban abortion access. In response to the Supreme court’s ruling, the BidenHarris administration is taking executive action to ensure abortion care remains available to all burdened by the verdict. A policy action tracker developed by The Century Foundation follows the administration’s critical measures to make abortion accessible. On August 5, during a special legislative session following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, Indiana became the first state in the nation to sign new abortion restrictions into law. On the Indiana Senate Republicans website, it reads as follows: Effective Sept. 15, 2022, SB 1 (ss) prohibits abortions except to protect the life or physical health of the mother, in cases where a pregnancy is forced on a woman through the horrific acts of rape and incest, or when an unborn child suffers from a lethal fetal anomaly. More information: • SB 1 (ss) includes language ensuring a woman who gets an abortion is not subject to any criminal penalties. • SB 1 (ss) does not affect access to the morning-after pill or any other method of birth control, does not affect treatment of miscarriages, does not affect treatment of ectopic pregnancies, and does not affect in-vitro fertilization procedures. • SB 1 (ss) does not create any new penalties for abortion providers. Doctors who perform an illegal abortion under the new law would be subject to the current criminal penalty in code (Level 5 felony). Under the new law, the Medical Licensing Board must revoke the doctor’s license if an investigation by the Attorney General demonstrates by a preponderance of the evidence that the abortion was illegal. • Victims of rape and incest who become pregnant may seek an abortion up to ten weeks post-fertilization. • A pregnant woman may seek an abortion if the child is diagnosed with a lethal fetal anomaly so long as the abortion occurs prior to viability or 20 post-fertilization weeks of pregnancy, whichever is earlier. If a pregnancy
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needs to be terminated due to a lethal fatal anomaly past viability, the proper medical procedure would be to induce labor, not perform an abortion. • All abortions must be performed at a hospital or ambulatory surgical center owned by a hospital. • SB 1 (ss) includes language that will improve the data the state receives on the number of abortions performed and for what reasons. “I told the legislature I wasn’t going to dither,” Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb said. “I said if this met my threshold of making progress, as maybe imperfect as it was, that I was going to sign it.” Despite criticism of the legislation from both abortion rights supporters and anti-abortion activists, Holcomb, who ran as a pro-life candidate, went on to say at an event in Carmel, Indiana, “The bottom line is that it’s progress towards valuing the sanctity of life and expressing it through law.” SB 1 states that “victims of rape and incest who become pregnant may seek an abortion up to ten weeks postfertilization.” A pregnancy is separated into trimesters. First trimester (0 to 13 weeks), Second Trimester (14 to 24 weeks), and Third Trimester (27 to 40 weeks). Is it possible for pregnancy not to be discovered within ten weeks (First Trimester)? “It’s not out of the question,” Michael Cackovic, an OB/GYN at the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, tells WebMD. “There are women who don’t have routine sex, don’t have routine periods, and don’t regularly see a doctor.” In the same article, Cackovic references that health problems like bipolar disorder or schizophrenia can also keep a minor or woman from knowing or understanding that she is pregnant. WebMD shows that uncontrolled diabetes, eating disorders, obesity, health problems like polycystic ovary syndrome, medicines, or stress can influence period cycles and explains why a minor or woman missing that first period might not be a sign of pregnancy. Cackovic also explains that if the placenta is in front of the uterus, a minor or woman may not be able to feel baby movement well into 20 weeks or the Second Trimester of pregnancy. According to the International Rescue Committee (IRC), there are four reasons why safe abortion care is critical to family planning and female health care. • According to the United Nations Human Rights Committee, access to abortion is a human right. That
