February 5, 2025
By Rachel Schnepf
Since the overturning of Roe v. Wade back in 2022, the call for abortion rights has been growing steadily louder. A lot of confusion has erupted as well, with many people not knowing or understanding what their rights (or lack thereof) are. Each state has set up their own laws when it comes to abortion and I would like to give you a run-down of the top 5 states within each belief system.
Definitions
First, I would like to add some clarity to what constitutes an abortion. The word abortion is widely used, but there are major differences and if not understood, adds more confusion to women and their reproductive health.
The term “elective abortion” or “induced abortion” is the procedure that is done voluntarily at the request of the mother for reasons other than mother or fetal health. A “spontaneous abortion” is what is generally known as a miscarriage, meaning the fetus died naturally on its own without outside influences.
In the 5 Pro-Life states listed below, their laws permit abortions when the mother was diagnosed with an ectopic pregnancy or when they had a spontaneous abortion and needed to have the deceased fetus removed. The states have considered the life of the mother and understand the need for an abortion in those circumstances.
Research
When delving into my research, I wanted to focus my ratings based on the areas of abortion laws that get the most attention or have the biggest misconceptions. The first is whether it is banned- wholly, partially, or not all. The next is if the states have any requirements to have it done like doctor visits, imaging, or counseling. Lastly, what sort of exceptions they allow for cases of rape, incest, or fetal anomalies.
Top 5 Pro-Life States
Alabama, Arkansas, and Texas are the top three that do not permit elective abortions. They have very strict laws that will only permit them if the mother’s life is in jeopardy or in cases of retained fetuses that have died from a miscarriage.
Indiana has the same criteria as the first three states, but they have differing exceptions. Not only do they allow abortions if the mother is likely to die, but they also include if the fetus has some sort of fatal abnormality, but that abortion would also need to be done before 20 weeks gestation. They also allow abortions for those who are victims of rape or incest, but will only permit them until 10 weeks gestation and need to show proof, as in a police report.
Finally, Mississippi is the last on this short list that has a strict ban on abortions. They only permit them if the mother’s life is in danger, or if the pregnant mother is a victim of rape.
Top 5 Pro-Choice States
I will lump all of these states together because they all have the same laws in place for abortions. Alaska, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, and Oregon all have the highest acceptance for abortions. They have no gestational limit, meaning a person can have an abortion in that state at any time during the pregnancy. They also don’t require any additional testing, ultrasounds, or doctor visits to have one done.
There are only four other states that have no limitations on abortions, but they were not chosen as the top five because they have requirements like getting counseling, having imaging done, or seeing a medical doctor before they can have one done. So considering the ease in which to get an abortion, the other four states have more obstacles than the states listed above.
The Pro-Life Movement is growing, but we still need to be on alert
There are twelve states that have total elective abortion (EA) bans, nine states that have no EA bans, and the remaining have limitations on how far along in the pregnancy an EA can occur. The average for those remaining states are about 22-24 weeks gestation and after that, they have set requirements and exceptions that need to be met.
It is important to remember that in each state, the life of the mother is a priority. Whether she has an ectopic pregnancy, had a miscarriage and needs assistance passing the deceased fetus, or other life-threatening diagnosis determined by medical doctors.
Some of the laws are written vaguely and can constitute an abortion for many reasons, instead of only for the life of the mother. Even though there are more states with pro-life legislation, having a more strict criteria for obtaining an EA is imperative in all the remaining states. For those states that have no limitations, there is much work to be done! In 2022, over 600,000 elective abortions were performed, that is a loss of that many children in the world, how heartbreaking.
It is paramount to continue the fight for the unborn child. We need to make sure that the legislature is clear in each state and that they give the unborn child the best chance to grow, develop, and live on this earth to experience their own lives and not have it taken away.
