Voters in seven states – Arizona, Colorado, Maryland, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, and New York – approved pro-abortion initiatives at the polls this week. About one-fifth of abortions in the U.S. – an average of around 19,000 per month – occur in these states, according to data from the Society of Family Planning.
In most of these states – Colorado, Maryland, Montana, Nevada, and New York – abortion is already legal, and the voting maintains access to the practice by enshrining the right to abortion in the state constitution.
In only two states did voters approve measures to expand access to abortion: in Arizona, where there is currently a gestational limit of 15 weeks, and in Missouri, where abortion is currently prohibited. The measures in both states allow the right to abortion to be enshrined in the state constitutions up to fetal viability, which doctors say is around 22 to 24 weeks of pregnancy.
Still, it remains unclear what these new measures will mean in terms of practical changes for women seeking an abortion in the United States.
“Adding constitutional protection does not automatically revoke prohibitions or restrictions; litigation is often necessary to overturn pre-existing state laws,” according to the Guttmacher Institute, a policy research organization focused on sexual and reproductive health that supports the right to abortion.
More than 171,000 people traveled to a different state to have an abortion last year, according to Guttmacher data, and greater access in Arizona and Missouri may help reduce barriers for women living in those and other states. Most abortions provided in Arizona were for out-of-state patients. Missouri borders several states that prohibit abortion.
Broad Restrictions Remain
Even though the electoral decisions in Arizona and Missouri improve access in those states, about 40% of women of reproductive age — more than 26 million women aged 15 to 44 — are in states with prohibitions or restrictions on abortion.
And pro-abortion measures were not approved in three other states that already have restrictions: South Dakota, which currently has an almost total ban; Nebraska with a gestational limit of 12 weeks; and Florida, where stricter policies have already reverberated throughout the region and the country as a whole.
Florida has been an access point for abortion for the Southern population. In 2023, more than 1 in 10 abortions in the U.S. occurred in Florida, with thousands traveling from other states, according to Guttmacher estimates.
But when the state’s more restrictive abortion policy went into effect in May of this year — limiting abortion after six weeks of gestation (many women find out about their pregnancy after this period) — monthly abortions in Florida fell by more than 30%.
Abortion rights advocates were hopeful that voters on Tuesday would help address some of the gaps created by the 6-week ban, but the measure put to a vote fell three percentage points short of the 60% support needed to pass.
It is unclear what the strategy of a new Trump administration will be regarding abortion. Trump stated during the campaign that he would veto a federal abortion ban if elected, but his positions on the issue have changed many times over the years.
Source: CNN