by Salli Swartz and Diane Haven
Good News
Oklahoma’s SB456 is DEAD. It was entitled the “Abolition of Abortion Act”, it defined an unborn child as a legal person that would be subject to the same laws for homicide and crimes as born persons and removed all legal protections for abortion providers.
South Carolina’s SB323 is DEAD. It was identified as the most extreme anti-abortion bill in the United States. Entitled the “Unborn Child Protection Act of 2025”, it would have banned all abortions and
- made abortion a felony equivalent to “the homicide of a person born alive"
- allow imprisonment up to 30 years for a person having an abortion or aiding in abortion
- prohibit transporting a minor out of state to obtain an abortion
- change the definition of a legal “contraceptive” to exclude anything that prevents ovulation or implantation of a fertilized ovum
- open the door to restrictions on in vitro fertilization (IVF) by defining a “human embryo” as a fertilized egg or zygote
- make it unlawful to possess any drug or substance that can be used for abortion
- make providing information about abortion unlawful, including via a website or phone call
- require public school students to watch a propaganda video called "Meet Baby Olivia," produced by the anti-abortion group Live Action
Other good news: the FDA has approved another generic abortion bill.
According to PBS New Hour, abortion pills are banned in 14 states. However, women (dulas) are trained to travel around the country not only helping women with their pregnancies but also helping to end their pregnancies. Their underground networks are so organized that the law enforcement has problems catching up with them!
Bad News:
Florida’s H0741 bill is DEAD. This bill would have given doctors permission to abort a fetus if it saved the woman’s life or physical impairment of bodily functions, or fetal abnormality.
North Dakota’s Supreme Court reversed the lower court’s ruling, so abortions are illegal, once again, with limited exceptions for health, rape, incest. There is no punishment for a woman who gets an abortion, but the provider can be fined $10,000 with a potential prison term of 5 years.
More of Louisiana’s Planned Parenthood clinics are closing. This state considers abortion pills as controlled substances and if you are caught using them, you can be prosecuted and serve time. Louisiana is also prosecuting a California doctor for mailing abortion medication.
A United Nations report states that since 2022 U.S. state abortion bans have put millions of women and girls at risk due to deteriorating access to sexual and reproductive healthcare.
“Tierra asked her doctors, over and over again, whether she could end a pregnancy that was pushing her toward organ failure. More than 90 physicians saw her. Not one felt safe offering her the standard-of-care option because Texas law threatens doctors with jail time for doing what is medically necessary. Tierra now leaves behind her fourteen-year-old son.” Congresswoman Judy Chu