Overturning of Roe v. Wade would have big impacts on ArkLaTex

(KSLA) - In the U.S. Supreme Court’s leaked draft opinion, Justice Samuel Alito writes with the plan to overturn the historic Roe v. Wade case. It’s a case that has prevented states from banning abortions since 1973.

The opinion is still in the draft stage, and a lot could change before the decision is officially released. However, if the decision reflects the leaked draft, it hands states the power to make their own regulations around abortion.

According to the Guttmacher Institute, “22 states have laws or constitutional amendments already in place that would make them certain to attempt to ban abortion as quickly as possible.”

Each of the states in the ArkLaTex have a trigger law in place, which is a “law designed to be ‘triggered’ and take effect automatically or by quick state action if Roe v. Wade no longer applies.

Critics worry that lack of access to abortion will lead people taking matters into their own hands. The World Health Organization cites unsafe abortion as a “leading – but preventable – cause of maternal deaths and morbidities” around the world and includes comprehensive abortion care in the list of essential healthcare services.

Despite that criticism, those in favor of overturning Roe v. Wade say mothers should “choose life” and find resources to support them and their babies, such as Heart of Hope in Keithville, La.

Copyright 2022 KSLA. All rights reserved.