Federal Abortion Ban
On April 18, 2007, the U.S. Supreme Court, in a 5-4 decision, upheld the Federal Abortion Ban signed into law by President George W. Bush. This law outlaws an abortion procedure doctors consider safest for women with high risk medical conditions. The law provides no exceptions if a woman’s health is in danger. The ban allows politicians to make decisions belonging to a woman and her doctor. The History In the court case Carhart v. Stenberg, Dr. LeRoy Carhart fought against a Nebraskan abortion procedures ban. The ban was found “unconstitutional” by Judge Richard J. Kopf, the Eighth Court of Appeals, and eventually by the Supreme Court in a 5-4 decision. The Supreme Court stated that the ban “subjects patients to a significantly greater risk of injury and death” and included “extreme and deceptive attempts to prohibit a wide range of safe abortions”. In October 2003, President Bush signed the “Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003” into law. Dr.Carhart, three other Nebraskan physicians, and two challengers in New York and California immediately filed challenges. During the next two years, the U.S. District Court of Nebraska, the Southern District of New York, the Northern District of California, and the Eighth, Second, and Ninth Court of Appeals all found the ban unconstitutional due to its failure to provide a health exception. In April of 2007, at the request of Attorney General Gonzales, the case of Gonzales v. Carhart and Gonzales v. Planned Parenthood were argued before the Supreme Court. In a stunning reversal (due to President Bush’s appointment of John Roberts and Samuel A. Alito to the bench) the Supreme Court effectively overturned 30 years of precedent with a 5-4 ruling supporting the Federal Abortion Ban. Effects of the Ban This ban criminalizes 10-15% of safe and effective abortions, even if the procedure is a medical necessity, and threatens doctors with two years in prison for providing women with the safest and most comprehensive care. Many doctors have said that the ban is so vague they will be forced to stop performing all abortions after the twelfth week. More importantly, this ban is a precursor to further challenges to Roe v. Wade. The Supreme Court’s decision to ignore the constitutional rights provided by Roe v. Wade and the overwhelming rulings of lower courts opens the door to further interference in our personal, private medical decisions.
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