On April 6, Oklahoma made abortions a felony except when in a medical emergency. On top of the laws from Texas and Mississippi banning abortion, the Oklahoma bill comes as both the most recent and the harshest. If the court upholds the law, then this could overturn Roe v. Wade, the right to an abortion before 23 weeks.
“This ban is more in line with the traditional bans that have been blocked in the past,” Emily Wales, interim CEO of Planned Parenthood, said. “So we are fairly confident that, as long as Roe remains the law of the land, there is a path to blocking this.”
A medical emergency is the only exception allowed by the bill. Senate Bill No. 612 states that a ‘medical emergency’ is a life-threatening problem that cannot be fixed by delivering the baby, and abortion would be necessary to save the woman’s life. If an abortion is performed without a medical emergency, the doctor may face up to 10 years in prison or a fine of $100,000. However, the person getting the abortion will not be charged, only the doctor.
“Senate Bill 612 is the strongest pro-life legislation in the country right now, which effectively eliminates abortion in Oklahoma,” Republican State Sen. Nathan Dahm, one of the bill’s authors, stated.
In September, Texas’s Heartbeat Act went into effect and illegalized abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected, which is roughly around 7 weeks. After this law was enforced, Oklahoma saw an increase of women from Texas seeking abortions across the state border. “A state of emergency exists in Oklahoma,” said state Senate President Pro Tempore Greg Treat about the increase of abortions in Oklahoma. “It’s sickening.”
Earlier this year, Oklahoma’s legislature passed a different abortion bill where it banned the practice, and private citizens could sue one another for performing an abortion. This law was passed in March of 2022. But now, with the new Oklahoma abortion ban passing the Senate, Governor Kevin Stitt just needs to sign it. Gov. Stitt has already stated he will sign any anti-abortion law that lands on his desk.
This is the most recent law to Oklahoma’s abortion bans. This bill will go into effect this summer, but will violate Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey, but it remains to be seen whether or not the current Supreme Court will uphold these cases.
