Oklahoma governor indicators Texas-style ban on most abortions

Oklahoma’s Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt has signed a Texas-style abortion ban that prohibits abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy

By SEAN MURPHY Associated Press

3 Could 2022, 23:03

• 4 min read

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Oklahoma’s Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt signed a Texas-style abortion ban on Tuesday that prohibits abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy, part of a nationwide push in GOP-led states hopeful that the conservative U.S. Supreme Court will uphold new restrictions.

“I need Oklahoma to be probably the most pro-life state within the country," Stitt tweeted after signing the bill.

Stitt's signing of the bill comes on the heels of a leaked draft opinion from the nation's high courtroom that it's considering weakening or overturning the landmark Roe v. Wade choice that legalized abortion almost 50 years ago.

The invoice Stitt signed takes impact instantly along with his signature, and the Oklahoma Supreme Court docket on Tuesday denied an emergency request to temporarily halt the invoice. Abortion suppliers say now that the new regulation is in impact, they are going to instantly cease offering companies for ladies after six weeks of being pregnant.

“Whereas the law is in effect, which it now is as a result of the governor signed it, abortion services after six weeks will be largely unavailable," stated Rabia Muqaddam, a employees legal professional for the New York-based Center for Reproductive Rights, which is representing Oklahoma abortion suppliers within the case. “It’s a short-term loss, but we’re hopeful that the Oklahoma Supreme Courtroom will still grant us aid."

The new regulation prohibits abortions once cardiac activity could be detected in an embryo, which consultants say is roughly six weeks into a pregnancy, before many ladies know they're pregnant. An identical invoice accredited in Texas last yr led to a dramatic discount within the variety of abortions carried out in that state, with many ladies going to Oklahoma and different surrounding states for the process.

Dr. Iman Alsaden, the medical director of Planned Parenthood Great Plains, stated Texas' legislation that took impact in September has given their workers an thought of what a post-Roe country might look like.

“Since that day, my colleagues and I have repeatedly treated patients who are fleeing their communities to seek care," Alsaden mentioned. “They’re taking break day of work, taking time out of school and taking time away from their family duties to get the care that until September 2021 they were able to get safely and readily of their communities."

The bill authorizes abortions if carried out as the results of a medical emergency, but there aren't any exceptions if the being pregnant is the result of rape or incest.

Like the Texas legislation, the Oklahoma invoice would allow personal citizens to sue abortion suppliers or anyone who helps a girl receive an abortion for up to $10,000. After the U.S. Supreme Court docket allowed that mechanism to stay in place, different Republican-led states sought to repeat Texas’ ban. Idaho’s governor signed the primary copycat measure in March, although it has been temporarily blocked by the state’s Supreme Court.

Stitt earlier this 12 months signed a invoice to make performing an abortion a felony crime in Oklahoma, however that measure shouldn't be set to take impact until this summer, and authorized specialists say it is more likely to be blocked because the Roe v. Wade decision still remains the regulation of the land.

The number of abortions performed annually in Oklahoma, which has four abortion clinics, has declined steadily over the last 20 years, from more than 6,200 in 2002 to 3,737 in 2020, the fewest in additional than 20 years, in response to data from the Oklahoma State Department of Health. In 2020, before the Texas legislation was handed, about 9% of the abortions performed in Oklahoma had been girls from Texas.

Before the Texas ban took effect on Sept. 1, about 40 women from Texas had abortions carried out in Oklahoma each month, the data exhibits. That quantity jumped to 222 Texas girls in September and 243 in October.