North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper has vetoed a Republican bill that sought to tighten the state’s abortion laws, including a ban on most abortions after 12 weeks of pregnancy. The legislation, which passed earlier this month, stipulated that providers who fell outside the terms of the bill would face action from state medical boards, up to and including the revocation of licenses. Speaking at a pro-choice rally outside the North Carolina Legislative Building, Cooper urged Republican lawmakers to use their veto-proof majorities in both houses of the General Assembly to uphold the current 20-week limit.
Although the bill contained exceptions extending the limit through to 20 weeks for cases of incest or rape and permitting abortions for foetuses with “life-limiting” congenital anomalies through to 24 weeks, Cooper and other supporters claim that the restriction would create a significant barrier to abortion access in the state, with detailed conditions detailed over 47 pages that endanger patient rights.
The Care for Women, Children and Families Act also includes provisions that would have made it more difficult to obtain medication abortions by eliminating access to the drugs via mail and limiting the circumstances under which they could be prescribed. Republican leaders have described the legislation as “a mainstream abortion compromise”, with Steve Troxler, the state’s agriculture commissioner, urging the General Assembly to override Cooper’s veto to “protect the unborn” and ensure “more safeguards for women”.
Abortion rights groups and healthcare providers across North Carolina have condemned the bill as an assault on women’s reproductive rights, with over 1,000 people rallying in the state’s capital of Raleigh in protest on Wednesday. The opposition to the bill, which observers say represented the largest ever pro-choice rally in North Carolina, was boosted by support from religious leaders and medical professionals given the serious impact the law would have on patient safety and access to healthcare.
With the bill expected to be put forward for an override vote by Republican lawmakers in the General Assembly, Governor Cooper made the case that just one ‘pro-choice’ Republican vote would be required to prevent the legislation’s passage, emphasizing that the state is in urgent need of greater protections for women’s reproductive healthcare rights.
Governor Cooper’s move came as similar abortion restrictions were pushed through in other states. Earlier this month, Republican Governor Greg Abbott signed a bill in Texas banning most abortions after six weeks, even in cases of rape or incest, sparking protests from both abortion rights supporters and lawmakers. In Mississippi, a Supreme Court challenge to the state’s ban on most abortions after 15 weeks is likely to be heard later this year.
North Carolina’s recent legislative initiatives seeking to restrict access to abortion provide yet another example of how reproductive healthcare has become a highly contentious issue, with some states pushing for more stringent abortion restrictions and others fighting to expand access to these essential healthcare services. As such, the political disputes surrounding reproductive healthcare are likely to continue to be a hotly contested topic across the US in the coming months.
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