Where abortion laws stand in every state a year after the Supreme Court overturned Roe
June 22, 2023 -In the year since the U.S. Supreme Court issued its ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization that ended nearly a half-century of a nationwide right to abortion, states have enacted contrasting policies on the issue. The Dobbs decision overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that protected the right to an abortion until fetal viability, which is generally considered to be around 23 or 24 weeks of pregnancy.
Lawmakers, governors, courts and voters are all shaping policies — and more changes are in the pipeline.
A state-by-state breakdown of where things stand:
STATES WHERE ABORTION IS BANNED THROUGHOUT PREGNANCY
ALABAMA
Law adopted in 2019 took effect after Dobbs.
Exception: Woman’s life or health.
ARKANSAS
Law adopted in 2019 took effect after Dobbs.
Exceptions: Woman’s life.
IDAHO
Law adopted in 2020 took effect after Dobbs.
Exceptions: Rape, incest and life of the woman. A judge has blocked enforcement in cases of medical emergencies.
The state also has a law making it a felony to transport a minor for the purpose of obtaining an abortion without parental consent.
KENTUCKY
Law adopted in 2019 took effect after Dobbs.
Exceptions: Health or life of the woman.
Kentucky voters in 2022 defeated a ballot question for an amendment that would have declared there to be no right to abortion in the state constitution.
LOUISIANA
Law adopted in 2006 took effect after Dobbs.
Exceptions: Life or heath of the woman.
MISSISSIPPI
Law adopted in 2007 took effect after Dobbs.
Exceptions: Rape and the life of the woman.
MISSOURI
Law adopted in 2019 took effect after Dobbs.
Exceptions: Life or heath of the woman.
NORTH DAKOTA
A new law was adopted in 2023, replacing one that was blocked by a court.
Exceptions: Rape, incest and health or life of the woman.
OKLAHOMA
Law adopted in 2022 took effect after Dobbs.
Exceptions: Life of the woman.
SOUTH DAKOTA
Law adopted in 2005 took effect after Dobbs.
Exceptions: Life of the woman.
TENNESSEE
Law adopted in 2020 took effect after Dobbs.
Exceptions: Health or life of the woman.
TEXAS
Law adopted in 2021 took effect after Dobbs.
Exceptions: Health or life of the woman.
WEST VIRGINIA
Ban adopted in 2022 after the Dobbs ruling.
Exceptions: Rape, incest and health or life of the woman.
WISCONSIN
Ban is from an 1849 law. There’s litigation over whether it should be in effect.
Exceptions: Woman’s life.
STATES WHERE ABORTION IS BANNED AFTER 6 TO 15 WEEKS OF PREGNANCY
ARIZONA
A ban on abortion after 15 weeks’ gestation was adopted in 2022 and took effect after the Dobbs ruling.
Exceptions: Health or life of the woman.
A state court has ruled that a ban on abortion at all stages of pregnancy does not apply to doctors; there’s a legal dispute about whether it is in effect for “helpers.”
GEORGIA
Law adopted in 2019 bans abortion once cardiac activity can be detected, generally around six weeks into pregnancy — and before women often know they’re pregnant.
Exceptions: Rape, incest and health or life of the woman.
NEBRASKA
Law adopted in 2023 bans abortion at 12 weeks’ gestational age.
Exceptions: Rape, incest and life of the woman.
STATES WHERE BANS HAVE BEEN ADOPTED BUT ARE NOT YET IN EFFECT
FLORIDA
A ban on abortion after 15 weeks’ gestation was adopted in 2022 and took effect after the Dobbs ruling.
Exceptions: Health or life of the woman.
If a court finds the current ban to comply with the state constitution, it is to be replaced with a more stringent one adopted in 2023 that would ban abortion after six weeks and add exceptions for cases of rape and incest.
NORTH CAROLINA
A ban on abortions after 20 weeks is in place until July 1, when a ban after 12 weeks, with exceptions for the health and life of the woman, rape and incest takes effect.
