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Abortion is the ending of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus before it can survive outside the uterus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or spontaneous abortion

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Details: Per the Ohio measure, which former-Gov. John Kasich vetoed twice in 2016 and 2018, physicians who perform abortions - either after a heartbeat is detected or fail to do an ultrasound to detect one - would face a fifth-degree felony.

The doctors could serve between 6 to 12 months behind bars, face a $2,500 court fine, and a $20,000 fine from the State Medical Board of Ohio.

The law makes no exceptions for cases of rape and incest.

The state of play: "Fetal heartbeat" measures are popping up in Republican-controlled states across the country, despite facing numerous legal challenges along the way.

Why it matters: The nationwide push collides with Supreme Court rulings that allow abortions up to 24 weeks during pregnancy when the fetus is not viable - or when a woman's health or life is at risk. But that hasn't stopped conservatives, emboldened by Justice Brett Kavanaugh's elevation to the nation's highest court last year, from sharpening their focus.

Conservatives and anti-abortion groups could hardly be more blatant about their intent. They want to landa successful lawsuit before the Supreme Court to overturn or weaken Roe v. Wade - the landmark 1973 ruling that made abortion legal nationwide.

The bottom line: These measures are further polarizing the already politically charged issue of abortion access, especially on a more local level.

Mike Gonidakis, president of Ohio Right to Life, said Wednesday in a statement: "[This] is the next incremental step in our strategy to overturn Roe v. Wade. While other states embrace radical legislation to legalize abortion on demand through the ninth month of pregnancy, Ohio has drawn a line and continues to advance protections for unborn babies."

Just moments after DeWine signed the bill, the American Civil Liberties Union tweeted: "We'll see you in court."

Go deeper: Editor's note: This story has been updated to include that the Ohio governor signed the measure. Trump's anti-abortion push

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Republican lawmakers push a surge of restrictive state abortion bans, taking aim at Roe v. Wade

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Details: Per the Ohio measure, which former-Gov. John Kasich vetoed twice in 2016 and 2018, physicians who perform abortions - either after a heartbeat is detected or fail to do an ultrasound to detect one - would face a fifth-degree felony.

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The American Historian: Abolishing Abortion: The History of the Pro-Life Movement in America

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The 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, legalizing abortion in all fifty states, changed everything and nothing. In the 1970s the anti-abortion movement remained heavily Catholic, and they continued to pitch their issue as a rights issue rather than a religious one. But in other essential ways the movement changed.

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Learn more and take action to fight for reproductive freedom.

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I believe that abortion care is a positive social good-and I think it's time people said so.

Not long ago, the Daily Kos published an article titled "I Am Pro-Choice, Not Pro-Abortion." "Has anyone ever truly been pro-abortion?" one commenter asked.

Uh. Yes. Me. That would be me.

I am pro-abortion like I'm pro-knee replacement and pro-chemotherapy and pro-cataract surgery. As the last protection against ill-conceived childbearing when all else fails, abortion is part of a set of tools that help women and men to form the families of their choosing. I believe that abortion care is a positive social good. And I suspect that a lot of other people secretly believe the same thing. I think it's time we said so.

Note: I'm also pro-choice. Choice is about who gets to make the decision. The question of whether and when we bring a new life into the world is, to my mind, one of the most important decisions a person can make. It is too big a decision for us to make for each other, especially for perfect strangers.

But independent of who owns the decision, I'm pro on the procedure. I've decided that it's time, for once and for all, to count it out on my ten fingers.

1. I'm pro-abortion because being able to delay and limit childbearing is fundamental to female empowerment and equality. A woman who lacks the means to manage her fertility lacks the means to manage her life. Any plans, dreams, aspirations, responsibilities or commitments-no matter how important-have a great big contingency clause built-in: "... until or unless I get pregnant, in which case all bets are off." Think of any professional woman you know. She wouldn't be in that role if she hadn't been able to time and limit her childbearing. Think of any girl you know who imagines becoming a professional woman. She won't get there unless she has effective, reliable means to manage her fertility. In generations past, nursing care was provided by nuns and teachers who were spinsters, because avoiding sexual intimacy was the only way women could avoid unpredictable childbearing and so be freed up to serve their communities in other capacities. But if you think that abstinence should be our model for modern fertility management, consider the little graves that get found every so often under old nunneries and Catholic homes for unwed mothers.

2. I'm pro-abortion because well-timed pregnancies give children a healthier start in life. We now have ample evidence that babies do best when women are able to space their pregnancies and get both prenatal and preconception care. The specific nutrients we ingest in the weeks before we get pregnant can have a lifelong effect on the well-being of our offspring. Rapid repeat pregnancies increase the risk of low birth-weight babies and other complications. Wanted babies are more likely to get their toes kissed, to be welcomed into families that are financially and emotionally ready to receive them, to get preventive medical care during childhood, and to receive the kinds of loving engagement that helps young brains to develop.

3. I'm pro-abortion because I take motherhood seriously. Most female bodies can incubate a baby; thanks to antibiotics, cesareans, and anti-hemorrhage drugs, most of us are able to survive pushing a baby out into the world. But parenting is a lot of work, and doing it well takes twenty dedicated years of focus, attention, patience, persistence, social support, mental health, money, and a whole lot more. This is the biggest, most life-transforming thing most of us will ever do. The idea that women should simply go with it when they find themselves pregnant after a one-night stand, or a rape, or a broken condom completely trivializes motherhood.

4. I'm pro-abortion because intentional childbearing helps couples, families, and communities to get out of poverty. Decades of research in countries ranging from the United States to Bangladesh show that reproductive policy is economic policy. It is no coincidence that the American middle class rose along with the ability of couples to plan their families, starting at the beginning of the last century. Having two or three kids instead of eight or ten was critical to prospering in the modern industrial economy. Early, unsought childbearing nukes economic opportunity and contributes to multigenerational poverty. Today in the United States, unsought pregnancy and childbearing is declining for everyone but the poorest families and communities, contributing to what some call a growing "caste system" in America. Strong, determined girls and women sometimes beat the odds, but their stories inspire us precisely because they are the exceptions to the rule. Justice dictates that the full range of fertility management tools-including the best state-of-the-art contraceptive technologies and, when that fails, abortion care-be equally available to all, not just a privileged few.

5. I'm pro-abortion because reproduction is a highly imperfect process. Genetic recombination is a complicated progression with flaws and false starts at every step along the way. To compensate, in every known species including humans, reproduction operates as a big funnel. Many more eggs and sperm are produced than will ever meet; more combine into embryos than will ever implant; more implant than will grow into babies; and more babies are born than will grow up to have babies of their own. This systematic culling makes God or nature the world's biggest abortion provider: nature's way of producing healthy kids essentially requires every woman to have an abortion mill built into her own body. In humans, an estimated 60 to 80 percent of fertilized eggs self-destruct before becoming babies, which is why the people who kill the most embryos are those like the Duggars who try to maximize their number of pregnancies. But the weeding-out process is also highly imperfect. Sometimes perfectly viable combinations boot themselves out; sometimes horrible defects slip through. A woman's body may be less fertile when she is stressed or ill or malnourished, but as pictures of skeletal moms and babies show, some women conceive even under devastating circumstances. Like any other medical procedure, therapeutic contraception and abortion complement natural processes designed to help us survive and thrive.

6. I'm pro-abortion because I think morality is about the well-being of sentient beings. I believe that morality is about the lived experience of sentient beings-beings who can feel pleasure and pain, preference and intention and who at their most complex can live in relation to other beings, love and be loved, and value their own existence. What are they capable of wanting? What are they capable of feeling? These are the questions my husband and I explored with our children when they were figuring out their responsibility to their chickens and guinea pigs. It was a lesson that turned expensive when the girls stopped drinking milk from cows that didn't get to see the light of day or eat grass, but it's not one I regret. Do unto others as they want you to do unto them. It's called the "Platinum Rule." In this moral universe, real people count more than potential people, hypothetical people, or corporate people.

7. I'm pro-abortion because contraceptives are imperfect, and people are too. The pill is 1960s technology, now half a century old. For decades, women were told that the pill was 99 percent effective, and they blamed themselves when they got pregnant anyway. But that 99 percent is a "perfect use" statistic. In the real world, where most of us live, people aren't perfect. In the real world, one in eleven women relying on the pill gets pregnant each year. For a couple relying on condoms, that's one in six. Young and poor women-those whose lives are least predictable and most vulnerable to being thrown off course-are also those who have the most difficulty taking pills consistently. Pill technology most fails those who need it most, which makes abortion access a matter not only of compassion but of justice. State-of-the-art IUDs and implants radically change this equation, largely because they take human error out of the picture for years on end, or until a woman wants a baby. And despite the deliberate misinformation being spread by opponents, these methods are genuine contraceptives, not abortifacients. Depending on the method chosen, they disable sperm or block their path, or prevent an egg from being released. Once settled into place, an IUD or implant drops the annual pregnancy rate below one in five hundred. And guess what? Teen pregnancies and abortions plummet-which makes me happy, because even though I'm pro-abortion, I'd love the need for abortion to go away. Why mitigate harm when you can prevent it?

8. I'm pro-abortion because I believe in mercy, grace, compassion, and the power of fresh starts. Many years ago, my friend Chip was driving his family on vacation when his kids started squabbling. His wife, Marla, undid her seatbelt to help them, and, as Chip looked over at her, their top-heavy minivan veered onto the shoulder and then rolled, and Marla died. Sometimes people make mistakes or have accidents that they pay for the rest of their lives. But I myself have swerved onto the shoulder and simply swerved back. The price we pay for a lapse in attention or judgment or an accident of any kind isn't proportional to the error we made. Who among us hasn't had unprotected sex when the time or situation or partnership wasn't quite right for bringing a new life into the world? Most of the time we get lucky; sometimes we don't. And in those situations we rely on the mercy, compassion, and generosity of others. In this regard, an unsought pregnancy is like any other accident. I can walk today only because surgeons reassembled my lower leg after it was crushed between the front of a car and a bicycle frame when I was a teen. And I can walk today (and run and jump) because another team of surgeons reassembled my knee joint after I fell off a ladder. And I can walk today (and bicycle with my family) because a third team of surgeons repaired my other knee after I pulled a whirring brush mower onto myself, cutting clear through bone. Three accidents, all my own doing, and three knee surgeries. Some women have three abortions.

9. I'm pro-abortion because the future is always in motion, and we have the power and responsibility to shape it well. As a college student, I read a Ray Bradbury story about a man who travels back into prehistory on a "time safari." The tourists have been coached about the importance of not disturbing anything lest they change the flow of history. When they return to the present, they realize that the outcome of an election has changed, and they discover that the protagonist, who had gone off the trail, has a crushed butterfly on the bottom of his shoe. In baby-making, as in Bradbury's story, the future is always in motion, and every little thing we do has consequences we have no way to predict. Any small change means that a different child comes into the world. Which nights your mother had headaches, the sexual position of your parents when they conceived you, whether or not your mother rolled over in bed afterward-if any of these things had been different, someone else would be here instead of you. Every day, men and women make small choices and potential people wink into and out of existence. We move, and our movements ripple through time in ways that are incomprehensible, and we can never know what the alternate futures might have been. But some things we can know or predict, at least at the level of probability, and I think this knowledge provides a basis for guiding wise reproductive decisions. My friend Judy says that parenting begins before conception. I agree. How and when we choose to carry forward a new life can stack the odds in favor of our children or against them, and to me that is a sacred trust.

10. I'm pro-abortion because I love my daughter. I first wrote the story of my own abortion when Dr. George Tiller was murdered, and I couldn't bear the thought of abortion providers standing in the crosshairs alone. "My Abortion Baby" was about my daughter, Brynn, who exists only because a kind doctor such as George Tiller gave me and my husband the gift of a fresh start when we learned that our wanted pregnancy was unhealthy. Brynn literally embodies the ever-changing flow of the future, because she could not exist in an alternate universe in which I would have carried that first pregnancy to term. She was conceived while I would still have been pregnant with a child we had begun to imagine but who never came to be. My husband and I felt very clear that carrying forward that pregnancy would have been a violation of our values, and neither of us ever second-guessed our decision. Even so, I grieved. Even when I got pregnant again a few months later, I remember feeling petulant and thinking, I want that baby, not this one. And then Brynn came out into the world, and I looked into her eyes, fell in love, and never looked back.

All around us living, breathing, and loving are the chosen children of mothers who waited, who ended an ill-timed or unhealthy pregnancy and then later chose to carry forward a new life. "I was only going to have two children," my friend Jane said as her daughters raced, screeching joyfully, across my lawn. Jane followed them with her eyes. "My abortions let me have these two when the time was right, with someone I loved."

Those who see abortion as an unmitigated evil often talk about the "millions of missing people" who were not born into this world because a pregnant woman decided "Not now." But they never talk about the millions of children and adults who are here today only because their mothers had abortions-real people who exist in this version of the future, people who are living out their lives all around us-loving, laughing, suffering, struggling, dancing, dreaming, and having babies of their own.

When those who oppose abortion lament the "missing people," I hear an echo of my own petulant thought: I want that person, not this one. And I wish that they could simply experience what I did, that they could look into the beautiful eyes of the people in front of them and fall in love.
Editors' note: This article was originally posted on AlterNet. It has been adapted for publication in Free Inquiry with the permission of the author.
Valerie Tarico

Valerie Tarico is a psychologist, author, and founder of WisdomCommons. org. She is the author of Trusting Doubt: A Former Evangelical Looks at Old Beliefs in a New Light (Oracle Institute Press, 2010).

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Why I Am Pro-Abortion, Not Just Pro-Choice | Free Inquiry

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I believe that abortion care is a positive social good-and I think it's time people said so. Not long ago, the Daily Kos published an article titled "I Am Pro-Choice, Not Pro-Abortion." "Has anyone ever truly been pro-abortion?" one commenter asked. Uh. Yes. Me. That would be me.

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A version of this article appears in the forthcoming issue of Conscience magazine.

What does it mean to be "pro-choice?"

And what does it mean to be a pro-choice politician today?

These are two questions that are far from academic at a time when the main focus of the majority of state legislatures and governors, the U.S. House of Representatives and a substantial number of U.S. Senators is not on jobs, deficits, the economy, the environment, the health of educational systems in the United States or the health and well-being of the U.S. population writ large, but instead on incessant, invasive, prurient, and often pornographic efforts to monitor the vaginas and wombs of the country's female citizens, the loss of freedoms resulting from which indeed negatively affect the basic human rights, health and well-being, economic prospects and educational attainment of women as a class and a demographic group and hence of their children and families.

This article explores what I believe to be the most basic attributes of being "pro-choice" in a political sense and within a reproductive and sexual justice framework. It is the first in two articles examining the issues, the second of which will focus on President Obama's record on the most fundamental of women's rights. I recognize that some may take issue with, or wish to expand upon, my own thinking on this issue and I welcome and indeed encourage debate about it here.
What Does It Mean to be "Pro-Choice?"
In its most narrow sense, the term "pro-choice" is short-hand for a group or individual who believes a woman should be able to choose an abortion if and when she desires to terminate a pregnancy that is either unintended and untenable, or simply untenable. And certainly, the anti-choice community focuses solely on this aspect of the pro-choice agenda.

But in the fullest sense-and in the political sense-it means much, much more because in truth being "pro-choice" is a political worldview that sees women as equal actors and full participants in society and is based on the belief that every born child should be a wanted, loved, cared-for child. Being pro-choice means understanding that the condition of pregnancy is not an obligation to parenthood and that unless women have the means to achieve sexual and reproductive health, effectively manage their fertility and plan their families, neither of the above conditions can exist.

Being pro-choice means believing in the right of women to choose whether, when, and with whom to bear a child and to determine whether, when, and to whom make a lifelong commitment to becoming a mother for the first time, the third time, or the seventh time; whether to become a mother not now but later, or never to become a mother at all; whether or not to become a parent to an apparently healthy child or give birth knowingly to a profoundly disabled child; whether to become a mother in spite of health risks or to avoid or terminate a pregnancy because of health risks; whether to freely decide to carry to term a pregnancy resulting from such profound human rights abuses as marital or stranger rape or incest; whether to carry an unintended pregnancy to term and give a child up for adoption or to decide to carry to term and raise a child resulting from an unintended pregnancy.

These are all choices women with agency and freedom make.

Being pro-choice means understanding abortion as a moral choice among numerous moral and morally defensible choices about pregnancy, childbearing, and parenting. It means understanding that some women-the majority of them already mothers-will make a moral choice to have an abortion when they do not feel ready or willing or able to carry a pregnancy to term, when a pregnancy is untenable for any number of reasons, when an additional pregnancy and a potential additional child threatens their own lives or the well-being, food security, educational attainment, or social development of living children and an established family. And, unequivocally yes, when the birth of a child or another child threatens the ability of any given woman to participate in society-whether by achieving an education, engaging in employment or otherwise deciding that "now is not the time" to bear a child or additional children.

It means recognizing that public and media hand-wringing about "injecting morality into the abortion debate" is profoundly dismissive of the reality that its already there, and that women are moral agents making moral choices about when and how to build their families and whether or not they are equipped to make the lifelong and all-encompassing commitment necessary to parenting a(nother) child. Being pro-choice means recognizing that no one religious tradition has a lock on what is moral, and that others can not decide for any individual woman how best to balance lifelong responsibilities. Being pro-choice means recognizing and respecting any given woman's right to decide that she could never terminate a pregnancy under any circumstance and any other woman's right to decide to terminate a pregnancy under circumstances not "acceptable" to others. Being pro-choice means recognizing that sensationalized examples of women who have abortions "we don't like" do not give us permission to regulate the bodies of all other women or deny them their rights.

Being pro-choice is profoundly "pro" life and is about being concerned as much or more about living and sentient women, and the safety and well-being of children actually born into and living in this world as it is about ova, sperm, fertilized eggs, blastocysts, embryos, and fetuses. Being pro-choice means understanding that healthy women and healthy pregnancies are both independent values in society, and that women who choose to be pregnant or to carry a pregnancy to term deserve quality pre- and post-natal care, choices in childbirth, and choices in childcare in accordance with their life decisions. Being pro-choice means recognizing-and working to remedy-the inherent injustice in the fact that women of economic and social privilege by definition have far greater access to the most basic sexual and reproductive health care than do women who are economically or socially marginalized or suffer race and class discrimination. Being pro-choice also means understanding that abortion is a fundamental component of health care and of the health services to which women need access whether or not they need or choose to terminate a pregnancy at any time in their lives. Being pro-choice means understanding that efforts to separate, marginalize or otherwise undermine insurance coverage for abortion, contraception or other reproductive and sexual health services or treating these differently than other medical procedures is fundamentally discriminatory to women and undermines their health and well-being.

Being pro-choice in the fullest sense means understanding there is no justifiable "trade-off" or "common ground" in denying some women access to contraception, abortion, or any other form of reproductive health care as part of some "sensible" political compromise (sensible only because it serves a particular politician's political interests), just as there is no justifiable trade-off in allowing citizens of one economic class or state to exercise their rights to vote, to freedom of speech, or to bodily integrity, for example, while denying the same to citizens of other states or economic classes for reasons of political expediency. There is, therefore, no justifiable reason for undermining the most fundamental rights of the women of the District of Columbia whose bodies were used as political pawns in the recent fight over the government shutdown. Being pro-choice means understanding it is never ok to use any faith tradition, ideology or personal belief to deny women as a class or individual women their rights. Ever.

Being pro-choice means understanding that self-determination for women regarding sex, sexuality, reproduction and motherhood is a fundamental precursor to womens' ability to achieve their own educational, economic and familial aspirations, a fundamental precursor to the health and well-being of individuals and families, and a core condition of the long-term stability and health of society. It therefore also means understanding the profound connections for women-supported by more than ample evidence-between economic and educational status and unfettered access to comprehensive sexual health education, contraception, family planning services, and abortion care.

Finally, it bears repeating again that being "pro-choice" is a political worldview that sees women as equal actors and full participants in society and is based on the belief that every born child should be a wanted, loved, cared-for child. This alone is a moral position, and unless and until these conditions are fulfilled, we can not achieve justice, no matter how many other deals we strike on other issues.

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What Does it Mean to Be "Pro-Choice?" - Rewire.News

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A version of this article appears in the forthcoming issue of Conscience magazine. What does it mean to be "pro-choice?" And what does it mean to be a pro-choice politician today? These are two questions that are far from academic at a time when the main focus of the majority of state legislatures and governors, the U.S.

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Pew Research Center's Religion & Public Life Project

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More than 35 years after the U.S. Supreme Court's historic Roe v. Wade (1973) decision granted a woman the constitutional right to terminate her pregnancy, abortion remains a controversial issue. Indeed, although the frequency of abortions in the U.S. has dropped to its lowest point since 1974, the debate over abortion continues to play a prominent role in state and federal politics.

Although Roe prohibited states from banning abortion until late in a woman's pregnancy, subsequent high court rulings allowed states more power to regulate the procedure. Today, there is an uneven patchwork of abortion laws around the country. For example, while 17 states provide public funding for all or most abortions that are deemed medically necessary, 28 states require doctors to provide a woman with some form of counseling about the risks of abortion and 24 states oblige a woman to complete a waiting period before having an abortion.

In the realm of public opinion, Americans remain divided on legalized abortion, with 47% expressing support for legalized abortion and 44% expressing opposition, according to two major surveys conducted in 2009. (See Support for Abortion Slips.) Furthermore, many groups - from women's rights organizations to socially conservative religious groups - have shown little appetite for compromise. Abortion rights opponents, or "pro-life" advocates, argue that life begins at conception and consider abortion tantamount to homicide. (See Fundamental Dignity at Every Stage of Life: An Argument Against Abortion Rights Featuring the Rev. J. Daniel Mindling.) Abortion rights supporters, or "pro-choice" advocates, maintain that women have an absolute right to decide what happens to their bodies - sometimes without any restrictions. (See Pro-Choice Does Not Mean Pro-Abortion: An Argument for Abortion Rights Featuring the Rev. Carlton Veazey.)

The variety in opinion on the issue is reflected in the diverse views of religious groups. For example, the Roman Catholic Church opposes abortion under any circumstances, while traditional Jewish teachings sanction abortion as a means of safeguarding the life and well-being of the mother. Other groups stop short of condemning the procedure and ask believers to consider religious teachings and personal faith in deciding whether to have an abortion. (See Religious Groups' Official Positions on Abortion.)

The seeds of today's abortion debate were sown long before the Supreme Court's decision in Roe v. Wade. In colonial times, abortion before "quickening" - the phrase then used to describe the first perceptible fetal movement - was considered a personal matter and was not restricted by law. But in the mid-1800s several states began outlawing the procedure for religious and moral reasons. By the early 20th century almost all states had bans making it a criminal offense to perform or attempt an abortion at any point during pregnancy, although some states continued to allow the procedure when it was necessary to save a woman's life.

But over the next few decades there was a concerted push for greater political and sexual freedom for women. Momentum for changes in anti-abortion laws reached a peak during the women's rights movement of the 1960s. By the late 1960s and early 1970s, 13 states permitted abortion in cases in which a woman's health was at risk, in cases of rape or incest, or in cases in which the fetus suffered from a severe defect. Four states - Alaska, Hawaii, New York and Washington - went further, allowing a woman to receive an abortion whenever she and her doctor decided it was needed.

Most states, however, continued to allow the procedure only in life-threatening situations. As a result, many women seeking abortions either traveled to countries where the procedure was legal or resorted to illegal, self-induced - and sometimes deadly - methods of terminating their pregnancies. (See Abortion Laws Around the World.)

In 1973, the legal landscape changed dramatically when the Supreme Court handed down its decision in Roe v. Wade. By giving a woman the constitutional right to an abortion, the justices overturned all state laws prohibiting the procedure and limited state regulation to the period late in a pregnancy when a fetus can survive outside the womb. Even then, the court reasoned, states must make an exception when a doctor deemed an abortion necessary to protect the mother's life or health.

But far from quelling the abortion debate, the Roe decision fueled a political and social firestorm that is still raging. Indeed, in the years following Roe, states repeatedly tested the decision's boundaries by passing laws that could make it difficult for some women to have abortions. (See States Probe Limits of Abortion Policy at Stateline.org.) Many of these earlier laws were struck down by lower federal courts or the Supreme Court. But in recent years, the high court has allowed states more power in regulating abortion, including a late-term procedure known as partial-birth abortion or dilation and extraction (D&X). (See A History of Key Abortion Rulings of the U.S. Supreme Court.)

Despite the Supreme Court's 2007 decision to uphold the federal partial-birth abortion ban, experts say that for now, a majority of the current Supreme Court justices remain likely to uphold Roe v. Wade. But if a future court were to overturn Roe, the decision could effectively return the issue to state courts. In that case, abortion would likely remain legal in more socially liberal states of the Northeast and West Coast and would likely be restricted in many of the more socially conservative states of the South and Midwest.

This report was written by Christine Vestal, Staff Writer, Stateline.org.

Photo credit: Corbis

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More than 35 years after the U.S. Supreme Court's historic Roe v. Wade (1973) decision granted a woman the constitutional right to terminate her pregnancy, abortion remains a controversial issue. Indeed, although the frequency of abortions in the U.S.

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Abortion (or 'termination of pregnancy') is when a pregnancy is intentionally ended. In Victoria, abortion is legal.

This factsheet provides an overview of the information you might need and where to get additional support if you need it.

Depending on how long you have been pregnant, as well as service availability, you may have the option of either a medical or surgical abortion. For more information about each procedure, and to work out which one is right for you, visit:

Abortion law in Victoria

Abortion is legal in Victoria. The Abortion Law Reform Act 2008 decriminalised abortion in Victoria. It describes what is required for abortion to take place.

A GP who has a conscientious objection to providing abortion information or a referral for an abortion must refer any woman seeking this information to another GP who doesn't object.

If you feel your GP has not done this, you can make a complaint via the Victorian Health Complaints Commissioner or the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA).

In May 2016, the Victorian Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008 was amended (new Part 9A inserted) to provide for the establishment of legally protected safe access zones within a radius of 150 metres around abortion providers. This ensures that women and staff entering or leaving premises providing abortions can do so safely and privately, without fear or harassment.

Abortion law in the rest of Australia

Abortion laws vary between Australian states and territories. Most of the variation concerns the reason for the abortion and the stage of pregnancy.

Read more about abortion law across Australia.

Deciding whether to have an abortion

While many women have made their decision to have an abortion before attending a clinic, you may feel you need more information to help make your decision. This may include information about alternatives (such as adoption and foster care), and support services that are available if you wish to continue with your pregnancy.

So that your decision is fully informed, at your first visit the abortion service provider will inform you about:

the procedure

the risks

anaesthesia options for surgical termination

pre- and post-abortion support.

If you need an interpreter, let the clinic know before you have your first appointment. They can arrange an interpreter on the phone or face-to-face.

If you are considering abortion and having difficulty making a decision, unbiased, non-judgemental and non-directional counselling from a trained professional may help you to work through your feelings and thoughts. Medicare-rebated pregnancy support counselling services are provided by some doctors, social workers, mental health nurses and psychologists.

1800 My Options

If you need more assistance with decision-making or support, you can contact 1800 My Options (1800 696 784) for information about support and counselling services, based on your needs and location.

1800 My Options is Victoria's sexual and reproductive health information and phoneline service. It is a woman-centred service, established to provide non-judgmental information to meet individual sexual and reproductive health needs.

1800 My Options does not provide medical, legal or financial advice or counselling to women as part of its service.

Abortion and planned or wanted pregnancy

During pregnancy, a woman may be informed about significant problems with her health or the health of the fetus. If this happens, she may be faced with the decision of whether to have an abortion. Genetic and pregnancy counselling is available to support women in this situation.

A woman may also reconsider her plans and terminate (end) a pregnancy that she had originally wanted - perhaps because of a relationship ending, financial problems, medical conditions or family issues.

If you need more assistance with decision-making or support, contact 1800 My Options (1800 696 784).

Abortion facts and myths

There are many myths and misconceptions about abortion. Some are based on beliefs from the past when abortion was illegal and 'backyard' procedures carried considerable risks.

If you have ever searched for information on abortion online, you might have encountered websites with conflicting and sometimes inaccurate information.

The Better Health Channel has created a list of abortion myths and facts to help separate fact from fiction.

Follow-up care and emotional support after an abortion

How you feel after an abortion will depend on your reasons for having one and how comfortable you were about your decision. In most cases, emotional distress peaks before the procedure and resolves soon after.

After having the procedure, most women feel:

relief

the return of a feeling of control

that they made the right decision for them at the time.

After an abortion, some women find it helpful to talk about their experiences with a trained professional. For some women, professional, non-biased counselling can be valuable.

If you find that you need additional support, let your abortion provider know. They will either provide follow-up support or refer you to an appropriate support service.

Important note: Some organisations that claim to offer non-biased counselling do not provide credible and balanced advice. They may be against abortion in all circumstances and may not be the right people to support you. Please see the list of non-biased support and information services below.

Where to get help

1800 My Options - Victoria's sexual and reproductive health information and phoneline service Tel. 1800 My Options (1800 696 784)

Family Planning Victoria - comprehensive sexual and reproductive health services for people of all ages Tel. 1800 013 952 or (03) 9257 0100

Family Planning Victoria's Action Centre - comprehensive sexual and reproductive health services for people of all ages, with an afternoon drop-in clinic for people under 25 years of age Tel. (03) 9660 4700 or 1800 013 952

Your local community health service's sexual health clinic, sexual and reproductive health clinic or women's health clinic

Women's health organisations for your region

Content Partner

This page has been produced in consultation with and approved by: Women's Health Victoria

Content on this website is provided for information purposes only. Information about a therapy, service, product or treatment does not in any way endorse or support such therapy, service, product or treatment and is not intended to replace advice from your doctor or other registered health professional. The information and materials contained on this website are not intended to constitute a comprehensive guide concerning all aspects of the therapy, product or treatment described on the website. All users are urged to always seek advice from a registered health care professional for diagnosis and answers to their medical questions and to ascertain whether the particular therapy, service, product or treatment described on the website is suitable in their circumstances. The State of Victoria and the Department of Health & Human Services shall not bear any liability for reliance by any user on the materials contained on this website.

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Abortion (or 'termination of pregnancy') is when a pregnancy is intentionally ended. In Victoria, abortion is legal. This factsheet provides an overview of the information you might need and where to get additional support if you need it.

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Good reproductive health policy starts with credible research

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Pro-Choice And Pro-Life Supporters Search For Common Ground | Middle Ground

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One of the wisest moves our Founding Fathers made when framing the American system of government was instituting a separation between church and state. As a religious person, I appreciate that no one faith can preempt another when it comes to our country's policies and laws - and that includes laws concerning abortion.

I personally believe that life begins at conception. I believe that an embryo and a fetus are unique human beings. I believe that choosing to terminate a life because of inconvenient timing is wrong. Those beliefs are all rooted in my religious faith, and are why the idea of abortion generally doesn't sit well with me.

But I can't laud the separation of church and state and also want my religious beliefs to be the basis for public policy. That's hypocrisy. I believe that policy should be based on the best data and facts we have available, not an individual or group's ideology.

And the data shows that the only things consistently proven to reduce abortion rates are good health care for women, comprehensive reproductive education, and easy access to affordable contraception. Outright bans on abortion have not been proven to reduce abortion rates. In fact, countries where abortion is illegal tend to have higher rates of abortion than countries where it is legal.

Here in the United States, the abortion rate has fallen to levels not seen since Roe v. Wade was decided in 1973. Abortion laws vary by state, but abortion rates have fallen in both states with abortion restrictions and those without. The key to those falling rates is not the legality or availability of abortion.

The key to lowering abortion rates appears to be reliable birth control. It is the only thing I have found in my research that is definitively proven to make a significant dent in abortion rates.

So that begs the question: Why aren't more pro-life advocates out marching for better access to birth control? Why aren't more pro-life advocates out campaigning for contraception to be free and easily obtained for all women? I mean, if that's the goal - to actually lower the number of abortions taking place - isn't that where we should be putting most of our energy?

One fatal flaw with the pro-life movement is that the same people who want to ban abortion also support legislation that restricts access to birth control and defunds programs that provide the education and contraceptive access that lead to lower rates of abortion. Pro-choice proponents generally advocate for greater access and funding for those things. Since education and birth control have a greater effect on abortion rates than banning abortion, it makes more sense to me to vote in favor of women's reproductive rights, which at this point is the domain of the pro-choice movement.

That's not the only reason I support legislation that keeps abortion legal, however. No matter how black-and-white people try to make abortion, it is not a cut-and-dry topic. Who am I (or our legislators) to preemptively judge the health ramifications of another person's situation? We simply cannot paint with a broad brush here. I've seen too many families who desperately wanted a baby have to go through incredibly painful experiences because their hands were tied by restrictive abortion laws. I've read too many real-life stories to believe that laws against abortion tend to do more good than harm.

I've seen too much to believe that abortion is always wrong. And as a person of faith, I believe that God - not the government - should be the only judge of that. I believe that God will take care of those babies, whatever the circumstances, and that our job is to take care of the women who are facing extremely difficult choices.

Aside from the fact that abortion restrictions can hurt families, and that I don't think my religious beliefs should rule other people's lives, I am a realist. And the reality is that abortion laws don't do anything to actually stop abortion. Women will still seek out abortion if it's illegal. Many will either go to places where it's legal, go to underground providers who may have no idea what they're doing, or try to perform the procedure themselves. If a woman dies from a botched "back alley" or self-induced abortion, the baby dies too. No one is really saved by banning abortion.

So if you feel called to advocate against abortion, go ahead and do that. If you want to convince women who are considering abortion to make another choice, go for it. You have the right to counsel and advocate all you want. But leave the law out of it.

And if you really want to lower abortion rates, put your weight behind legislation that is most likely to reduce unwanted pregnancy. Start advocating for affordable, accessible birth control, comprehensive sex education, and good health care for everyone. If the goal is to reduce abortion rates - which I assume is the goal of anyone who calls themselves pro-life - that's the only proven way to do so.

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I'm Truly Pro-Life, Which Is Why I Am Politically Pro-Choice

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One of the wisest moves our Founding Fathers made when framing the American system of government was instituting a separation between church and state. As a religious person, I appreciate that no one faith can preempt another when it comes to our country's policies and laws - and that includes laws concerning abortion.

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United States - pro-choice and pro-life supporters in 2018 | Statistic

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This statistic shows the results of survey among Americans on whether they consider themselves pro-life of pro-choice regarding abortion from 2003 to 2018. In 2018, 48 percent of respondents stated they consider themselves pro-choice, meaning they would leave the decision to abort a pregnancy up to the pregnant woman.