Florida, Kentucky, Oklahoma restrict abortion laws

As the nation waits for the Supreme Court to rule on a direct challenge to Roe v. Wade, officials in Florida, Kentucky and Oklahoma have started restricting abortion access in their states. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill banning abortions after 15 weeks into law Thursday. The new law includes exceptions, including if the abortion is necessary to save a mother’s life. However, those exceptions do not include cases of rape, incest or human trafficking.

“House Bill 5 protects babies in the womb who have beating hearts, who can move, who can taste, who can see, and who can feel pain,” Gov. DeSantis said in a statement. “Life is a sacred gift worthy of our protection, and I am proud to sign this great piece of legislation which represents the most significant protections for life in the state’s modern history.”

The 15-week timeline to restrict abortions is notable because it’s on the same timeline as the Mississippi law at the center of the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Supreme Court case. It’s also the timeline in Kentucky’s new abortion law, which passed Wednesday after the legislature overrode Gov. Andy Beshear’s veto.

The Kentucky abortion law passed a day after Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt signed another abortion bill into law. The Oklahoma law makes it a felony to perform an abortion, punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

“I represent all four million Oklahomans. They overwhelmingly–overwhelmingly–do not support abortions in the state of Oklahoma,” Gov. Stitt said Tuesday. “We know it’s going to be challenged by some folks, but we are so excited about the Supreme Court addressing this issue and giving it back to the states, where it belongs.”

Depending on the result of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health, states beyond Florida, Kentucky and Oklahoma could restrict abortion access. According to the Guttmacher Institute, a think tank that supports abortion rights, if Roe is overturned, 26 states are certain or likely to quickly ban or severely restrict abortion.