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Abortion Rights Survive Louisiana Legislative Session, For Now

By Tanya M. Shlosman

Emboldened by the appointments of conservative justices to the Supreme Court,  many states continue to pass bills aimed at severely restricting or eliminating abortion access. Louisiana is no exception to this trend and according to The Advocate, the majority Republican legislature failed to pass HB813 by Rep. Danny McCormick that would have jailed women who had abortions and used some forms of birth control. However, women’s reproductive health was further restricted again this session with the passage of Senate Bill 342 sponsored by Senator Katrina Jackson, D-Monroe and Senate Bill 388 by Senator Sharon Hewitt, R-Slidell. 

SB 342 by Senator Katrina Jackson will go into effect upon the Governor’s signature and is an extreme ban that criminalizes all abortions from the "moment of fertilization."  The bill does not include any exceptions for rape and incest. The bill was amended to ensure it doesn’t make birth control and emergency contraception illegal.

SB 388 by Senator Sharon Hewitt  will go into effect August 1, 2022 and criminalizes medication abortion if not prescribed by a Louisiana physician, and when not administered to the patient in person, making it a felony under any other circumstances. The bill was amended to ensure it doesn’t make birth control and emergency contraception illegal.

Louisiana already has a trigger ban that will immediately go into effect if Roe v. Wade is overturned. The law already allows the trigger ban to be enforced against anyone who violates the law through imprisonment, civil fines, and professional disciplinary action. Any day now the decision in the Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization case currently before The Supreme Court could gut or overturn Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey.

While both pro and anti-reproductive health advocates continue their fight in legislative houses across the country, abortion is still legal in the state of Louisiana. There are currently three clinics in Louisiana: Delta Clinic in Baton Rouge; Women’s Health Care Center in New Orleans, and Hope Medical in Shreveport. People seeking financial assistance for an abortion in central and south Louisiana can contact the New Orleans Abortion Fund and for patients in north Louisiana, contact the Goldstein Fund.