Supreme Court Protects Access Abortion — For Now

On June 29, 2020, the Supreme Court struck down a medically unnecessary law that would have made abortion virtually inaccessible in Louisiana. This decision follows the precedent the Supreme Court set four years ago in Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt, which struck down an identical onerous restriction in Texas. In both cases, the restriction would have shut down many of the abortion providers in the state and placed a substantial obstacle in the path of people seeking an abortion.

Today’s decision aligns with the will of the American people. Seven in 10 people support access to safe, legal abortion. 

While this decision allows us to breathe a sigh of relief, far too many people of color and people with low incomes still live in a world where access to abortion is nearly impossible as a result of numerous structural barriers.

• Today’s 5–4 decision does not stop other states from trying to impose admitting privileges requirements on abortion providers. The decision also leaves room for all states (including Louisiana) to impose other harmful restrictions, which always have an outsized impact on communities of color and those with low incomes. 

• We saw politicians in 11 states use the COVID-19 pandemic — which has now sickened more than 1.5 million Americans — as a pretense to block access to abortion. And just like restrictions on abortion, because of racism built into our economic and health care systems, the pandemic has hurt Black and Latinx communities more.

• We expect the administration to continue to nominate federal judges hostile to reproductive health. These judges will be deciding our rights for decades, including on many cases that could undermine Roe v. Wade.

What Just Happened — and What’s Still at Stake

June Medical Services v. Russo (formerly v. Gee) was about admitting privileges, a type of targeted restriction on abortion providers (TRAP) law designed to shut down health centers while giving lip service to “women’s health.” 

• The Supreme Court confirmed what we’ve long known: Medically unnecessary abortion restrictions only make it harder on people who need care. Restricting abortion until it is virtually inaccessible is unconstitutional.

• This decision means Louisiana’s three remaining health centers that provide abortion can continue caring for patients.

• However, Louisiana’s remaining abortion providers are not nearly enough for the 850,000 Louisiana women of reproductive age. Over a quarter of these women are Black, and as such face additional barriers to care due to the history of systemic racism and economic inequality.  

Abortion is protected — for now. This is a national victory for the millions of people who already struggle just to access basic health care. However, we still face an onslaught of attacks on reproductive health care.

A Looming Threat

We don’t expect the attacks on abortion access to slow down. In fact, we expect the administration and its allies in the Senate to double down on remaking the federal courts to promote their anti-abortion rights agenda. The White House and Senate majority leadership have been rushing through judicial nominees even now, amid the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic and protests against racist police violence. 

Meanwhile, 16 abortion cases are one step away from the Supreme Court and a decision in any of those could upend abortion access in other states. And it’s not just abortion: In a matter of days, the Supreme Court will decide on whether employers can drop coverage for birth control for health insurance based on their personal objections; and this fall, the court will consider overturning the Affordable Care Act altogether.

Intersections: Race and Abortion Access

It’s a fact: Your ability to access abortion is still determined by where you live and how much money you make — and in the U.S., that effectively also means the color of your skin.

As our nation confronts the COVID-19 pandemic, we must also address the public health crisis that racism presents. Politicians might not care about your health and rights — but we do. And we will not back down from this fight.