Abortion in Arkansas

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Abortion in Arkansas is illegal [1] except when it is necessary to save the life of the pregnant individual. [2] Doctors determined to have performed an abortion face up to 10 years in prison and fines up to $100,000. [2] [3]

Contents

History

Legislative history

Status of the "heartbeat bills", i.e. abortion bans at around 6 weeks, by state (exceptions not marked): .mw-parser-output .legend{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}.mw-parser-output .legend-color{display:inline-block;min-width:1.25em;height:1.25em;line-height:1.25;margin:1px 0;text-align:center;border:1px solid black;background-color:transparent;color:black}.mw-parser-output .legend-text{} Heartbeat bills supplemented or rendered moot by abortion bans at all stages Abortion bans at all stages, but heartbeat bills blocked Other states with abortion bans at all stages, or states without abortion providers Heartbeat bill in force, without total abortion bans Heartbeat law partially passed by state legislature Law passed but blocked or struck down by court order Heartbeat Bill.svg
Status of the "heartbeat bills", i.e. abortion bans at around 6 weeks, by state (exceptions not marked):
  Heartbeat bills supplemented or rendered moot by abortion bans at all stages
  Abortion bans at all stages, but heartbeat bills blocked
  Other states with abortion bans at all stages, or states without abortion providers
  Heartbeat bill in force, without total abortion bans
  Heartbeat law partially passed by state legislature
  Law passed but blocked or struck down by court order

By the end of the 1800s, all states in the Union except Louisiana had therapeutic exceptions in their legislative bans on abortions. [4] In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Maryland, New Mexico, North Carolina and Oregon made reforms to their abortion laws, with most of these states providing more detailed medical guidance on when therapeutic abortions could be performed. [4] An amendment to the state constitution in 1988 said, "The policy of Arkansas is to protect the life of every unborn child from conception until birth, to the extent permitted by the Federal Constitution. [5]

The state was one of twenty-three states in 2007 to have a detailed abortion-specific informed consent requirement. [6] Georgia, Michigan, Arkansas and Idaho all required in 2007 that women must be provided by an abortion clinic with the option to view an image of their fetus if an ultrasound is used prior to the abortion taking place. [7] Arkansas, Minnesota and Oklahoma all require that women seeking abortions after 20-weeks be verbally informed that the fetus may feel pain during the abortion procedure despite a Journal of the American Medical Association conclusion that pain sensors do not develop in the fetus until between weeks 23 and 30. [7] Informed consent materials about fetal pain at 20-weeks in Arkansas, Georgia and Oklahoma says, "the unborn child has the physical structures necessary to experience pain." The Journal of the American Medical Association has concluded that pain sensors do not develop in the fetus until between weeks 23 and 30. [7] In 2013, state Targeted Regulation of Abortion Providers (TRAP) law applied to medication induced abortions and private doctor offices. [8]

A bill banning abortion after twelve weeks was passed on January 31, 2013, by the Arkansas Senate, [9] [10] but vetoed in Arkansas by Governor Mike Beebe, but, on March 6, 2013, his veto was overridden by the Arkansas House of Representatives. [10] [11] A federal judge issued a temporary injunction against the Arkansas law in May 2013, [12] and in March 2014, it was struck down by federal judge Susan Webber Wright, who described the law as unconstitutional. [13]

The Trigger Law SB149 [1] was filed in the Arkansas Senate on January 22, 2019, by Jason Rapert and Mary Bentley. It became law on February 20, 2019. It bans all abortions, with the only exception being for the life of the pregnant individual. Performing an abortion is an unclassified felony with a fine of up to $100,000 or 10 years imprisonment.

Judicial history

The US Supreme Court's decision in 1973's Roe v. Wade ruling meant the state could no longer regulate abortion in the first trimester. [4]

In May 2013, a federal judge blocked the implementation of the legislation passed in March 2013. [10] On May 27, 2015, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a lower court ruling and permanently blocked the law from being enforced. [14] In January 2016, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review the case, leaving the Eighth Circuit's ruling in place. [15]

On June 24, 2022, the United States Supreme Court overruled Roe v. Wade in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization . [16] This triggered SB149's abortion ban.

Clinic history

Number of abortion clinics in Arkansas by year Number of abortion clinics in Arkansas by year.png
Number of abortion clinics in Arkansas by year

Between 1982 and 1992, the number of abortion clinics in the state decreased by five, going from thirteen in 1982 to eight in 1992. [5] In 2014, there were three abortion clinics in the state. [17] In 2014, 97% of the counties in the state did not have an abortion clinic. That year, 77% of women in the state aged 15–44 lived in a county without an abortion clinic. [18] As of 2019, the state had one Planned Parenthood clinic, which offered abortion services. [19]

Statistics

In the period between 1972 and 1974, there were zero recorded illegal abortion deaths in the state. [20] In 1990, 241,000 women in the state faced the risk of an unintended pregnancy. [5] In 2010, the state had no publicly funded abortions. [21] In 2013, among white women aged 15–19, there were 270 abortions, 240 abortions for black women aged 15–19, 40 abortions for Hispanic women aged 15–19, and 10 abortions for women of all other races. [22] In 2014, 38% of adults said in a poll by the Pew Research Center that abortion should be legal in all or most cases. [23] In 2017, the state had an infant mortality rate of 8.2 deaths per 1,000 live births. [24]

Number of reported abortions, abortion rate and percentage change in rate by geographic region and state in 1992, 1995 and 1996 [25]
Census division and stateNumberRate % change 1992–1996
199219951996199219951996
US Total1,528,9301,363,6901,365,73025.922.922.9–12
West South Central127,070119,200120,61019.61818.1–8
Arkansas7,1306,0106,20013.511.111.4–15
Louisiana13,60014,82014,74013.414.714.710
Oklahoma8,9409,1308,40012.512.911.8–5
Texas97,40089,24091,27023.120.520.7–10
Number, rate, and ratio of reported abortions, by reporting area of residence and occurrence and by percentage of abortions obtained by out-of-state residents, US CDC estimates
LocationResidenceOccurrence % obtained by
out-of-state residents		YearRef
No.Rate^Ratio^^No.Rate^Ratio^^
Arkansas7,13013.51992 [25]
Arkansas6,01011.11995 [25]
Arkansas6,20011.41996 [25]
Arkansas4,0247.01044,2537.411022.22014 [26]
Arkansas3,8056.6983,7716.59718.62015 [27]
Arkansas3,4326.0903,2075.68416.52016 [28]
^number of abortions per 1,000 women aged 15–44; ^^number of abortions per 1,000 live births

Abortion rights views and activities

Protests

Women from the state participated in marches supporting abortion rights as part of a #StoptheBans movement in May 2019. [29]

Following the Roe v. Wade overturn draft leak on May 2, 2022, an abortion rights protest was held in Fayetteville, Arkansas. [30]

Following the overturn of Roe v. Wade on June 24, 2022, around 200 abortion rights protesters gathered outside the Arkansas State Capitol in Little Rock. [31]

In Little Rock, Arkansas on March 10, 2024, several hundred abortion rights protesters rallied at the state capitol building in support of the petition for an Arkansas abortion amendment to end the abortion ban in the state. [32]

On July 5, 2024, Arkansans For Limited Government announced that they submitted over 100,000 signatures from all 75 counties to the Secretary of State's office for a proposed abortion rights amendment to be placed on the ballot in the November 2024 election. The amendment would legalize abortion up to 18 weeks and protect abortion access after that point for cases of rape, incest, fatal fetal abnormalities and to protect the pregnant individual's life or health. [33] However, the ballot proposal lacked support from national abortion rights groups such as Planned Parenthood due to the fact that it still would have allowed abortions in the Arkansas to be banned after 20 weeks, which is earlier than other states where it remains legal. [34] On August 22, 2024, the Arkansas Supreme Court removed the measure from the November 2024 ballot in a 4-3 ruling, determining that the Arkansas Secretary of State's decision not to count signatures was legal due to Arkansans for Limited Government failing to comply with state law by failing to file the paid canvasser training certification. [34] The problem resulted from documentation regarding paid signature gatherers being submitted separately rather than in a single bundle. [34]

Anti-abortion views and activities

In June 2024, several canvassers for the Arkansas abortion rights amendment reported that they had been stalked, followed, threatened, harassed, doxxed and filmed by anti-abortion protesters. [35]

Related Research Articles

Abortion in Alaska is legal at all stages of pregnancy. In September 2024, an Alaska superior court judge struck down the requirement that only licensed physicians provide abortions, meaning that the procedure can now also be legally performed by nurse practitioners and physician assistants. As of 2016, Alaska does not require a minor to notify a parent or guardian in order to obtain an abortion. 63% of adults said in a poll by the Pew Research Center that abortion should be legal in all or most cases. Alaska was one of only four states to make abortion legal between 1967 and 1970, a few years before the US Supreme Court's decision in 1973's Roe v. Wade ruling. Alaska had consent requirements for women seeking abortions by 2007 that required abortion providers to warn patients of a link between abortion and breast cancer, despite it being scientifically unsupported.

Abortion in Delaware is legal up to the point of fetal viability. As of June 2024, Civiqs polling found that 72% of Delawareans believed that abortion should be legal in all or most cases, while 23% believed it should be illegal in all or most cases. There was a therapeutic exceptions in the state's legislative ban on abortions by 1900. Informed consent laws were on the books by 2007. In 2017, Senator Bryan Townsend, D-Newark introduced legislation to try to make clear that abortion would remain legal in the state in case 1973's Roe v. Wade ruling was overturned. The legislation was subsequently updated. Attempts have been made to introduce mandatory ultrasound laws, but they failed to get out of committee. State legislators tried to move ahead the week at which a woman could get a legal abortion in 2019.

Abortion in Hawaii is legal. 66% of adults in Hawaii said in a poll by the Pew Research Center that abortion should be legal in all or most cases. Hawaii began allowing abortion care de jure in 1970, the first state to do so. State law enacted at that time stated said, "the State shall not deny or interfere with a female's right to choose or obtain an abortion of a nonviable fetus or an abortion that is necessary to protect the life or health of the female."

Abortion in Idaho is illegal from fertilization. Following the overturning of Roe v. Wade on June 24, 2022, abortion in Idaho was criminalized by the trigger law which states that a person who performs an abortion may face two to five years of imprisonment. The ban allows exceptions for maternal health, rape and incest within the first trimester. The law took effect on August 25, 2022.

Abortion in Kansas is legal. Kansas law allows for an abortion up to 20 weeks post-fertilization. After that point, only in cases of life or severely compromised physical health may an abortion be performed, with this limit set on the belief that a fetus can feel pain after that point in the pregnancy. In July 2024, the Kansas Supreme Court struck down two abortion restrictions.

Abortion in Maine is legal, although terminations after fetal viability can only be performed if a physician determines it to be medically necessary. According to a poll by the Pew Research Center, 64% of adults said that abortion should be legal, with 33% stating that it should be illegal in all or most cases.

There are no laws that restrict abortion in Minnesota based on the time from conception. The Minnesota Supreme Court ruled the Minnesota Constitution conferred a right to an abortion in 1995 and the DFL-led Minnesota Legislature passed and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz signed into law a bill in 2023 to recognize a right to reproductive freedom and preventing local units of government from limiting that right. The Center for Reproductive Rights labels Minnesota as one of the most abortion-protective states in the country.

Abortion in Montana is legal. The number of abortion clinics in Montana has fluctuated over the years, with twenty in 1982, twelve in 1992, eight providers of which seven were clinics in 2011, and five clinics in 2014. There were four clinics from 2015 to February 2018 when All Families Healthcare clinic in Whitefish reopened. There were 1,690 legal abortions in 2014, and 1,611 in 2015.

Abortion in Nevada is legal up to the 24th week of pregnancy, under the Nevada Revised Statutes chapter 442, section 250; and after 24 weeks if the pregnancy could be fatal for the pregnant individual. 62% of adults said in a poll by the Pew Research Center that abortion should be legal while 34% said it should by illegal in all or most cases. Legislation by 2007 required informed consent. Attempts were successfully made to pass abortion legislation in May 2019, being pushed through a largely Democratic controlled state legislature. The number of abortion clinics in Nevada has declined over the years, with 25 in 1982, seventeen in 1992 and thirteen in 2014. There were 8,132 legal abortions in 2014, and 7,116 in 2015. Due to the high level of support for abortion rights in the state, continued access to abortion is supported by all parties, including the Republicans.

Abortion in New York is legal, although abortions after the 24th week of pregnancy require a physician's approval. Abortion was legalized up to the 24th week of pregnancy in New York in 1970, three years before it was legalized for the entire United States with the Supreme Court's decision in Roe v. Wade in 1973. Roe v. Wade was later overturned in 2022 by the Supreme Court in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization. The Reproductive Health Act, passed in 2019 in New York, further allows abortions past the 24th week of pregnancy if a pregnant individual's life or health is at risk, or if the fetus is not viable. However, since these exceptions are not defined by the law, and the law carries no criminal penalties for the pregnant individual, abortion is effectively legal throughout pregnancy.

Abortion in North Dakota is technically legal, but with no current providers. The state's sole abortion clinic, the Red River Women's Clinic, relocated to Minnesota.

Abortion in Oregon is legal at all stages of pregnancy. The Center for Reproductive Rights classifies Oregon as highly protective of abortion rights.

Abortion in Rhode Island is legal. On June 19, 2019, the legal right to abortion was codified into Rhode Island law by passage of the Reproductive Privacy Act.

Abortion in South Dakota is illegal. Anyone who induces an abortion is guilty of a Class 6 felony. An exception is included to "preserve the life of the pregnant female," given appropriate and reasonable medical judgment.

Abortion in Tennessee is illegal from fertilization and provides no exceptions for rape, incest or the health of the mother. Tennessee's abortion legislation provides no explicit exceptions for the pregnant patient’s health. It makes an exception for an “affirmative defense” for emergencies, but the vagueness of what constitutes an emergency means that physicians hesitate to provide abortions even when the mother's life is in jeopardy. Attempts to codify the exceptions into law have been rejected by Republican politicians in Tennesse.

Abortion in Utah is legally performed under a temporary restraining order blocking enforcement of the state's trigger law, which bans abortion. According to HB136, which is effective state law from June 28, 2022, abortions are banned following 18 weeks of gestation. Abortion was banned following the Supreme Court case, Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization on June 24, 2022. Utah State Legislation enacted SB 174 in May 2020, which, upon the overturn of Roe v. Wade, made inducing an abortion a second-degree felony. The law includes exceptions for pregnancies "caused by rape or incest," pregnancies that put the mother's life at risk, or "if two doctors say the fetus has a lethal defect." Rape and incest exceptions will only be viable if the crimes were previously reported to law enforcement officials.

Abortion in Vermont is legal at all stages of pregnancy. A 2014 Pew Research Center poll showed 70% of adults in the state believed abortion should be legal in most or all cases, the second highest percentage in the country. The state funds abortions deemed medically necessary for low-income women via Medicaid.

Abortion in the U.S. state of Virginia is legal up to the end of the second trimester of a pregnancy. Before the year 1900, abortion remained largely illegal in Virginia, reflecting a widespread trend in many U.S. states during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Abortion was viewed as a criminal act and subject to state laws that prohibited it. However, by 1950, Virginia introduced a legal therapeutic exception, allowing for abortion under specific circumstances, primarily when a woman's physical or mental health was at risk. Notably, the University of Virginia Hospital established a review board in 1950 responsible for evaluating and approving abortion requests, particularly those grounded in psychiatric reasons. This thorough approval process resulted in a significant decrease in the number of abortions performed at the hospital.

Abortion in Washington is legal and available up to the point of fetal viability, or in case the pregnancy poses a risk to life or health. In a poll by the Pew Research Center, 60% of adults said that abortion should be legal in all or most cases.

Abortion in Wisconsin has been legal since September 18, 2023, and is performed in Madison, Milwaukee and Sheboygan through 22 weeks gestation. However, elective abortions in Wisconsin are under dispute after the overturning of Roe v. Wade by the Supreme Court of the United States on June 24, 2022. Abortion opponents cite an 1849 law that they claim bans the procedure in all cases except when the life of the mother is in danger. However, lower level courts have argued that the law only applies to infanticide and not consensual abortions. The enforceability of the law is disputed and being considered by the state courts. Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin announced that they would resume abortion services in Madison and Milwaukee on September 18, 2023. Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin later announced that they would resume abortion services in Sheboygan on December 28, 2023.

References

  1. 1 2 "SB149 Bill Information". www.arkleg.state.ar.us. Archived from the original on 24 March 2023. Retrieved 2024-08-27.
  2. 1 2 Blumenthal, Paul (2022-06-14). "These States Will Ban Abortion Now That Roe Is Overturned". HuffPost. Retrieved 2022-06-24.
  3. ↑ "Document".
  4. 1 2 3 Buell, Samuel (1991-01-01). "Criminal Abortion Revisited". New York University Law Review. 66 (6): 1774–1831. PMID   11652642.
  5. 1 2 3 Arndorfer, Elizabeth; Michael, Jodi; Moskowitz, Laura; Grant, Juli A.; Siebel, Liza (December 1998). A State-By-State Review of Abortion and Reproductive Rights. DIANE Publishing. ISBN   9780788174810.
  6. ↑ "State Policy On Informed Consent for Abortion" (PDF). Guttmacher Policy Review. Fall 2007. Retrieved May 22, 2019.
  7. 1 2 3 "State Abortion Counseling Policies and the Fundamental Principles of Informed Consent". Guttmacher Institute. 2007-11-12. Retrieved 2019-05-22.
  8. ↑ "TRAP Laws Gain Political Traction While Abortion Clinics—and the Women They Serve—Pay the Price". Guttmacher Institute. 2013-06-27. Retrieved 2019-05-27.
  9. ↑ Parker, Suzi (January 31, 2013). "Arkansas Senate passes fetal heartbeat law to ban most abortions". Reuters . Retrieved September 5, 2013.
  10. 1 2 3 "Abortion Restrictions in States". The New York Times. Retrieved 2019-05-25.
  11. ↑ Bassett, Laura (March 6, 2013). "Arkansas 12-Week Abortion Ban Becomes Law". Huffington Post . Retrieved July 31, 2013.
  12. ↑ "Ark. 'heartbeat' abortion law blocked - Washington Times". The Washington Times.
  13. ↑ AP (March 15, 2014). "U.S. judge strikes Arkansas' 12-week abortion ban". USA Today. Retrieved September 20, 2014.
  14. ↑ "Arkansas Human Heartbeat Protection Act (SB 134)". rewire.news. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
  15. ↑ "Heartbeat Bans". rewire.news. Retrieved February 10, 2019. In January 2016, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review the case, leaving the Eighth Circuit's ruling in place.
  16. ↑ "Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization". SCOTUSblog. Retrieved 2024-08-22.
  17. ↑ Gould, Rebecca Harrington, Skye. "The number of abortion clinics in the US has plunged in the last decade — here's how many are in each state". Business Insider. Retrieved 2019-05-23.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  18. ↑ Panetta, Grace; lee, Samantha (2018-08-04). "This is what could happen if Roe v. Wade fell". Business Insider (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 2019-05-24. Retrieved 2019-05-24.
  19. ↑ "Health Centers - Arkansas - Planned Parenthood".
  20. ↑ Cates, Willard; Rochat, Roger (March 1976). "Illegal Abortions in the United States: 1972–1974". Family Planning Perspectives. 8 (2): 86–92. doi:10.2307/2133995. JSTOR   2133995. PMID   1269687.
  21. ↑ "Guttmacher Data Center". data.guttmacher.org. Retrieved 2019-05-24.
  22. ↑ "No. of abortions among women aged 15–19, by state of residence, 2013 by racial group". Guttmacher Data Center. Retrieved 2019-05-24.
  23. ↑ "Views about abortion by state - Religion in America: U.S. Religious Data, Demographics and Statistics". Pew Research Center. Retrieved 2019-05-23.
  24. ↑ "States pushing abortion bans have highest infant mortality rates". NBC News. 24 May 2019. Retrieved 2019-05-25.
  25. 1 2 3 4 Henshaw, Stanley K. (2005-06-15). "Abortion Incidence and Services in the United States, 1995-1996". Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health. 30: 263–270. Retrieved 2019-06-02.
  26. ↑ Jatlaoui, Tara C. (2017). "Abortion Surveillance — United States, 2014". MMWR. Surveillance Summaries. 66 (24): 1–48. doi:10.15585/mmwr.ss6624a1. ISSN   1546-0738. PMC   6289084 . PMID   29166366.
  27. ↑ Jatlaoui, Tara C. (2018). "Abortion Surveillance — United States, 2015". MMWR. Surveillance Summaries. 67 (13): 1–45. doi:10.15585/mmwr.ss6713a1. ISSN   1546-0738. PMC   6289084 . PMID   30462632.
  28. ↑ Jatlaoui, Tara C. (2019). "Abortion Surveillance — United States, 2016". MMWR. Surveillance Summaries. 68 (11): 1–41. doi: 10.15585/mmwr.ss6811a1 . ISSN   1546-0738. PMC   6289084 . PMID   31774741.
  29. ↑ Bacon, John. "Abortion rights supporters' voices thunder at #StopTheBans rallies across the nation". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2019-05-25.
  30. ↑ Fielder, Lydia. "Arkansans protest for abortion rights in Fayetteville". 4029 News. Retrieved 2024-01-23.
  31. ↑ Earley, Neal. "Around 200 Arkansans attend abortion-ruling protest at state Capitol". Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette. Retrieved 2024-01-23.
  32. ↑ "Rally at the state Capitol shows support for abortion amendment". March 11, 2024. Retrieved July 13, 2024.
  33. ↑ Edelman, Adam. "Arkansas abortion rights groups collect enough signatures to advance ballot measure". NBC News. Retrieved 2024-07-05.
  34. 1 2 3 DeMillo, Andrew (August 22, 2024). "Arkansas Supreme Court upholds rejection of petitions to let voters decide on abortion access". Associated Press. Retrieved August 23, 2024.
  35. ↑ Rodriguez, Barbara; Panetta, Grace. "'They want us to be scared': Anti-abortion activists target ballot measure organizers in Arkansas". The 19th. Retrieved 2024-07-13.
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