College student accused of setting fire to Wyoming’s only abortion clinic pleads not guilty
June 2, 2023 GMTCHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — A college student who authorities say admitted setting fire to a building slated to become Wyoming's only full-service abortion clinic pleaded not guilty to an arson charge in federal court on Friday.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — In a blow to abortion opponents in Ohio, a fall ballot issue aimed at enshrining access to the procedure in state's constitution will not be split into two separate issues — one about abortion, and one about other reproductive healthcare.
Abortion plays key role in closely watched Virginia primary involving Democratic ‘pro-life’ lawmaker
June 2, 2023 GMTPETERSBURG, Va. (AP) — On a recent Monday afternoon, Virginia state Sen. Joe Morrissey got a warm reception as he made his way through a neighborhood in Petersburg, knocking on doors, touting his credentials and asking residents for their votes in the upcoming Democratic primary.
America’s religious leaders sharply divided over abortion, a year after Roe v Wade’s reversal
June 2, 2023 GMTIn the year since the Supreme Court struck down the nationwide right to abortion, America’s religious leaders and denominations have responded in strikingly diverse ways — some celebrating the state-level bans that have ensued, others angered that a conservative Christian cause has changed the law of the land in ways they consider oppressive.
College student accused of setting fire to Wyoming’s only abortion clinic to enter plea
June 2, 2023 GMTCHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — A college student who authorities say admitted setting fire to a building slated to become Wyoming's only full-service abortion clinic was scheduled to appear in federal court Friday to enter a plea to an arson charge.
Oklahoma high court strikes down 2 abortion bans; procedure remains illegal in most cases
May 31, 2023 GMTOKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that two state laws banning abortion are unconstitutional, but the procedure remains illegal in the state in nearly all cases except life-threatening situations.
CARSON CITY, Nev. (AP) — Nevada's Joe Lombardo on Tuesday became one of the first Republican governors to enshrine protections for out-of-state abortion patients and in-state providers, adding the western swing state to the list of those passing new laws to solidify their status as safe havens for abortion patients.
ACLU sues to block new hybrid Nebraska law restricting abortion, gender-affirming care for minors
May 30, 2023 GMTLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — As promised, the American Civil Liberties Union is suing to block the Nebraska Legislature’s most controversial measure combining an abortion ban with restrictions on gender-affirming care for minors, just days after it was signed into law.
Wisconsin Republicans introduce bill that clarifies procedures that don’t qualify as abortion
May 30, 2023 GMTMADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin Republicans released a package of legislation Tuesday that would tweak the state's abortion ban by specifying medical procedures to save a mother's life that don't qualify as abortion.
Judge halts South Carolina’s new stricter abortion law until state Supreme Court review
May 26, 2023 GMTCOLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — A judge put South Carolina’s new law banning most abortions around six weeks of pregnancy on hold Friday until the state Supreme Court can review the measure, giving providers a temporary reprieve in a region that has enacted strict limits on the procedure.
Doctor’s supporters, hospital at odds with Indiana penalty for talking about 10-year-old’s abortion
May 26, 2023 GMTINDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Supporters of an Indianapolis doctor voiced frustration Friday with the Indiana medical board’s decision that she violated patient privacy laws when she talked with a newspaper reporter about providing an abortion to a 10-year-old Ohio rape victim.
Indiana doctor who talked publicly about a 10-year-old rape victim’s abortion is fined
May 26, 2023 GMTA hearing on whether an Indianapolis doctor should face disciplinary action after she spoke publicly about providing an abortion to a 10-year-old rape victim from neighboring Ohio opened with finger pointing over how the case became a political flashpoint.
As South Carolina governor signs new law, abortion restrictions strain providers in US South
May 25, 2023 GMTCOLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — A wave of newly approved abortion restrictions in the Southeastern United States has sent providers scrambling to reconfigure their services for a region with already severely limited access.
South Carolina moves closer to abortion ban, a Southern trend that puts pressure on Virginia
May 24, 2023 GMTHere are all of the abortion debates happening this week in US courts and statehouses
May 24, 2023 GMTLawmakers in South Carolina passed an abortion ban while a judge in Montana was weighing restrictions there in the latest developments in the shifting landscape of law since the U.S. Supreme Court last year overturned Roe v.
South Carolina ready to renew abortion ban around 6 weeks of pregnancy after Senate vote
May 24, 2023 GMTCOLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Abortion will soon be severely restricted in one of the last bastions for legal access in the U.S. South.
The South Carolina Senate approved a bill Tuesday that would ban most abortions after around six weeks of pregnancy — before most people know they are pregnant — and sent it to the Republican governor who has promised to sign the bill into law as soon as possible.
As abortion battle shifts, Planned Parenthood to boost regional affiliate funds, cut national staff
May 23, 2023 GMTPlanned Parenthood is shifting funding to its state affiliates and cutting national office staff to reflect a changed landscape in both how abortion is provided and how battles over access are playing out.
Nebraska woman pleads guilty to burning fetus after abortion
May 23, 2023 GMTOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A Nebraska woman pleaded guilty Monday to burning and concealing a fetus after she took medication to end her pregnancy, while prosecutors move forward with a criminal case accusing her mother of illegally helping with the abortion.
Nebraska governor signs 12-week abortion ban, limits on gender-affirming care for minors
May 22, 2023 GMTLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Republican Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen signed a bill Monday that bans abortion at 12 weeks of pregnancy and restricts gender-affirming medical care for people younger than 19.
The abortion ban takes effect immediately, while the ban on gender-affirming care takes effect on Oct.
WASHINGTON (AP) — One woman had to carry her baby, missing much of her skull, for months knowing she'd bury her daughter soon after she was born. Another started mirroring the life-threatening symptoms that her baby was displaying while in the womb.
Takeaways from AP’s report on secretive networks helping women circumvent Honduras’ abortion ban
Burner phones, aliases, code words: How secret networks help women circumvent Honduras’ abortion ban
How one North Carolina lawmaker’s defection from the Democratic Party upended abortion protections
May 19, 2023 GMTRALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Mere weeks before North Carolina's GOP-controlled legislature enacted a 12-week abortion limit over the Democratic governor's opposition this week, state Republican lawmakers appeared just one vote shy of an override.
Rhode Island governor signs bill to fund abortion coverage for state workers and Medicaid recipients
May 19, 2023 GMTPROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Rhode Island Gov. Daniel McKee signed a bill into law Thursday that would let state funds be used to pay for health insurance plans that cover state workers and Medicaid recipients seeking abortions.
HELENA, Mont. (AP) — A Montana judge has temporarily blocked the state from enforcing a new ban on the type of abortion most commonly used after 15 weeks of gestation until he can hear arguments on the law next week.
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Lawyers seeking to preserve pregnant women's access to a drug used in the most common method of abortion got pushback Wednesday from appellate judges with a history of supporting abortion restrictions.
Illinois Democrats say abortion-access protections are a promise: ‘You’re safe here’
May 17, 2023 GMTSPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — Access to abortion is essentially locked down in Illinois. But Democrats are looking for ways to further protect the practice and its availability, including to outsiders who potentially face home-state penalties for seeking treatment here.
LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan companies will be prohibited from firing or otherwise retaliating against workers for receiving an abortion under a bill signed Wednesday by Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer that amends the state's civil rights law.
Mark Gietzen, abortion foe who forced recount of Kansas vote, dies in plane crash at 69
May 17, 2023 GMTWICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Mark Gietzen, a longtime conservative Republican and anti-abortion activist in Kansas who forced a recount of the state's decisive vote affirming abortion rights last year has died in a plane crash.
Trust in Supreme Court fell to lowest point in 50 years after abortion decision, poll shows
May 17, 2023 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — Confidence in the Supreme Court sank to its lowest point in at least 50 years in 2022 in the wake of the Dobbs decision that led to state bans and other restrictions on abortion, a major trends survey shows.
Planned Parenthood asks Montana judge to block law that bans 2nd-trimester abortion method
May 17, 2023 GMTHELENA, Mont. (AP) — Planned Parenthood of Montana on Tuesday asked a state judge to temporarily block a law that bans the abortion method most commonly used after 15 weeks of gestation, arguing it is unconstitutional.
Gov. Ron DeSantis criticized Donald Trump for implying that Florida's new six-week abortion ban is “too harsh,” going after the former president as DeSantis prepares to challenge him for the 2024 Republican nomination.
Abortion after 12 weeks banned in North Carolina after GOP lawmakers override governor’s veto
May 17, 2023 GMTRALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Legislation banning most abortions after 12 weeks of pregnancy will become law in North Carolina after the state’s Republican-controlled General Assembly successfully overrode the Democratic governor’s veto late Tuesday.
Democrats keep Pennsylvania House majority, positioning party to prevent limits on abortion rights
May 17, 2023 GMTHARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Democrats maintained their narrow Pennsylvania House majority Tuesday by winning a special election and along with it continued control over how the chamber will handle abortion, gun rights and election law legislation.
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Abortions would be almost entirely banned after about six weeks of pregnancy under a bill debated early into Wednesday morning by the South Carolina House in a development that follows months of Republicans in the chamber insisting instead on a near-total ban that the state Senate recently rejected.
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Three conservative appeals court judges, each with a history of supporting restrictions on abortion, will hear arguments May 17 on whether a widely used abortion drug should remain available.
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Conservative Nebraska lawmakers are taking what could be an all-or-nothing bet by proposing to merge two of the legislative session’s most contentious proposals — one to restrict abortion and another that would ban gender-affirming care for minors.
A Texas woman was fatally shot by her boyfriend after she got an abortion, police say
May 15, 2023 GMTDALLAS (AP) — A man who didn't want his girlfriend to get an abortion fatally shot her during a confrontation in a Dallas parking lot, police said.
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — In front of an exuberant crowd, North Carolina’s Democratic governor vetoed legislation Saturday that would have banned nearly all abortions in his state after 12 weeks of pregnancy.
Missouri lawmakers fail to raise bar to amend constitution, easing path for abortion rights
May 13, 2023 GMTJEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Chaos in Missouri's Republican-led Senate on the final day of session Friday meant the failure of a longtime GOP priority to make it harder to amend the state's constitution, which lawmakers predicted could ease the path to restoring abortion rights in the state.
Clergy: North Carolina’s proposed abortion restrictions are another effort to harm the state’s poor
May 12, 2023 GMTRALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Clergy and other opponents of a bill further restricting abortion in North Carolina that's about to be vetoed by Gov.
Montana Supreme Court decides registered nurses and midwives can continue providing abortion care
May 12, 2023 GMTHELENA, Mont. (AP) — Montana's Supreme Court ruled unanimously Friday that advanced-practice registered nurses can continue to provide abortion care in the state, likely setting up legal clashes with the 2023 Legislature, which passed restrictive laws saying only physicians can perform abortions.
WILMINGTON, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina's Democratic governor rallied residents and local doctors Wednesday in Wilmington as part of a last-minute bid to persuade at least one Republican lawmaker to sustain his expected veto of a bill banning most abortions after 12 weeks of pregnancy.
BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Republican lawmakers in Louisiana rejected legislation Wednesday that would add exceptions in cases of rape and incest to one of the strictest abortion bans in the country.
Republican Virginia Attorney General Miyares defends staying out of abortion pill case
May 10, 2023 GMTRICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares has defended his decision not to join most of his Republican counterparts around the country in supporting a lawsuit challenging the safety and approval of the abortion medication mifepristone.
Vermont governor signs 1st-in-nation shield bills that explicitly include medicated abortion
May 10, 2023 GMTVermont's Republican governor signed abortion and gender affirming shield bills into law Wednesday that are the first in the country to explicitly include protecting access to a medication widely used in abortions even if the U.S.
South Carolina Republicans advance new abortion restrictions
May 10, 2023 GMTCOLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina Republicans are pushing new abortion restrictions in a late attempt to curtail access after a near-total ban failed last month.
Anti-abortion group meets with Trump, weeks after criticism
May 9, 2023 GMTHOUSTON (AP) — The leader of a major anti-abortion group met with former President Donald Trump on the issue, just weeks after raising questions about his commitment to restricting access to the procedure.
Abortion-restriction effort reintroduced in Nebraska
May 9, 2023 GMTA new effort was introduced late Monday in the Nebraska Legislature to restrict abortion access in the state, less than two weeks after a bill that would have banned abortion at around six weeks of pregnancy failed to overcome a filibuster.
Abortion clinics in 3 states sue to protect pill access
May 8, 2023 GMTAbortion providers in three states filed a lawsuit Monday aimed at preserving access to the abortion pill mifepristone, even as the drug is threatened by a separate Texas lawsuit winding its way through U.S.
Abortion pill legal challenge threatens miscarriage care
May 6, 2023 GMTLess than a year after losing her daughter Emilia at five days old, Jillian Phillips suffered a miscarriage.
It was Halloween weekend in 2016, and her doctor said she could wait for it to end naturally, have a surgical procedure or take medication.
GOP boycott in Oregon halts bills on guns, abortion and more
May 5, 2023 GMTSALEM, Ore. (AP) — Most Republican members of the Oregon Senate failed to show up for the second straight day Thursday, delaying action by the majority Democrats on bills on gun safety, abortion rights and gender-affirming health care.
NC lawmakers pass 12-week abortion ban; governor vows veto
May 5, 2023 GMTRALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina lawmakers on Thursday approved and sent to the governor a ban on nearly all abortions after 12 weeks of pregnancy, down from the current 20 weeks, in response to last year’s overturning of Roe v.
ACLU sues amid Missouri GOP spat over abortion measure cost
May 4, 2023 GMTJEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Missouri ACLU on Thursday sued statewide officials for stonewalling a constitutional amendment to restore abortion rights as the attorney general pushes for a price tag on the proposal that is 1 million times higher than what the state auditor has estimated.
In latest abortion law chapter: Bill signings, court rulings
May 4, 2023 GMTCourts this week blocked abortion restrictions from taking effect in two states, while lawmakers in a third are forging ahead with a plan for a new ban that's less stringent than most.
Those are some of the latest developments in an abortion landscape that is being crafted by lawmakers, governors and courts across the country in the aftermath of last year's U.S.
GOP prosecutor urges judge to toss Wisconsin abortion suit
May 4, 2023 GMTMADISON, Wis. (AP) — Attorneys for a Republican prosecutor urged a judge Thursday to toss out a lawsuit seeking to repeal Wisconsin's 174-year-old abortion ban, arguing that a newer state law permitting pre-viability abortions complements the ban rather than supersedes it, as Democrats maintain.
North Carolina House OKs bill tightening abortion limits
May 4, 2023 GMTRALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The North Carolina House on Wednesday approved a Republican package of abortion restrictions that would tighten the state's ban on the procedure from after 20 weeks to after 12 weeks, while creating new exceptions but also more requirements for pregnant women and physicians.
Oregon Republicans stay home ahead of abortion, guns votes
May 3, 2023 GMTSALEM, Ore. (AP) — Republican state senators in Oregon didn't show up to work on Wednesday, denying the Democrats who control the chamber a quorum and casting doubt on planned votes later this week on legislation pertaining to gun safety, abortion rights and gender-affirming health care.
Wyoming mayor: Sorry for fiery abortion clinic Facebook post
May 3, 2023 GMTCHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — A new abortion clinic in deeply conservative Wyoming is stirring strong emotions, with the mayor of the state's second-biggest city apologizing for a Facebook post some said evoked an arson attack that delayed the clinic's opening by almost a year.