Abortion Laws

Pre-Roe ban

State laws banning abortion before the U.S. Supreme Court decided Roe v. Wade in 1973 were made unenforceable by this decision.

If Roe is overturned, these laws could be revived in one of two ways. In states where the pre-Roe ban was never declared unconstitutional or blocked by the courts, state officials could seek to enforce the law. In states where courts previously issued a ruling blocking the pre-Roe ban based on the decision, officials could file an action asking courts to in effect reactivate the ban.

Trigger bans

Abortion bans passed after Roe v. Wade was decided that are written so as to become effective if the Supreme Court limits or overturns Roe.

6-week bans

(pre-viability gestational ban)
A 6-week abortion ban, also known as a “heartbeat law,” generally prohibits abortion when a heartbeat is detectible (usually at 6 weeks). This law prohibits abortion before a fetus is viable, and thus, is purportedly unconstitutional and unenforceable under Roe.*

Life at Conception Law / Unborn Child Protection Act

(pre-viability gestational ban)
Law protects preborn children from the moment of fertilization and makes abortion a felony for abortionists. This law, like a 6-week ban, is purportedly unconstitutional, and thus unenforceable, under Roe v. Wade.*

*The enforcement of most pre-viability bans passed after 1973 was halted by court actions pursuant to Roe v. Wade. If Roe is overturned, state officials will likely have to file new court actions to revive these bans.(Note: Texas’s Heartbeat and Oklahoma’s Life-at-Conception laws are currently in effect because their enforcement mechanism is through lawsuits by individuals rather than the government.)