What’s Going on with the Supreme Court and Abortion Rights?

On December 1, after hearing close to two hours of debate on a Mississippi law that bans abortions after 15 weeks, the Supreme Court appeared open to upholding the state law.

The case, Dobbs. V. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, directly challenges the holdings of Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey, which established the constitutional right to abortion and prohibited states from banning the procedure before fetal viability.

The law was initially put into place in 2018 by the Republican-dominated Mississippi legislature but was blocked after a federal court challenge.

“If it really is an issue about choice, why is 15 weeks not enough time?” Chief Justice John Roberts asked.

Chief Justice Roberts, who is known to be a moderate conservative, also said Mississippi’s law was not a “dramatic departure” from the viability standard.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 90% of abortions in the U.S. take place in the first 13 weeks of pregnancy.

The only abortion clinic in Mississippi, Jackson Women’s Health Organization, remains open and offers abortions up to 16 weeks of pregnancy. The providers said about 100 abortions a year are done after the 15th week.

Texas’ new abortion law has also banned abortions once cardiac activity is detected in the embryo, which normally occurs in the first six weeks of pregnancy.

However, the state cannot enforce the law because citizens are incentivized to sue anyone who performs or “aids and abets” abortions. This makes the law difficult to challenge because no singular entity is responsible.

Amy Hagstrom Miller, president and CEO of abortion provider Whole Woman’s Health, said that keeping abortion clinics in Texas open “is not sustainable if this ban stays in effect much longer.” According to a Texas Tribune article, Miller’s chain of clinics has been operating at less than 30% of its income since the law went into effect.

The tension over whether or not the Supreme Court will overturn Roe v. Wade has only increased because of these two state laws. Although Chief Justice Roberts was the leading voice on this argument, Justice Samuel A. Alito also said “the only real options” the Supreme Court has at this point are to reaffirm Roe v. Wade or overturn it.