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Organizations, lawmakers respond to abortion ruling in Indiana

Indiana politicians and organizations responded to the ruling Friday.

INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana Supreme Court ruled Friday that the state's abortion ban doesn't violate the state constitution, removing a major hurdle to enforcing the ban Republicans approved last summer. 

The court’s decision overturns a county judge’s ruling that the ban likely violates the state constitution’s privacy protections, which the judge said are stronger than those found in the U.S. Constitution. That judge’s order has allowed abortions to continue in Indiana since September, despite the ban.

Here's how prominent organizations and lawmakers responded to the decision: 

ACLU of Indiana

“We are devastated by the Indiana Supreme Court’s ruling today which will deprive more than 1.5 million people in Indiana— particularly Black, Latino, and Indigenous people, people with low incomes, and LGBTQ+ people, who already face the most challenges when seeking medical care —  of life-saving, essential health care. Now, patients will be forced either to flee the state to access abortion if they have the means, seek abortion outside of the health care system, or carry pregnancies against their will with profound medical risk and life-altering consequences. Despite this setback, we’ll keep fighting to restore reproductive rights in Indiana and to help Hoosiers get access to the services they need. Today’s decision is not the end of our fight for equitable, compassionate care in Indiana, or the patients in surrounding states who rely on Indiana for access to abortion.

The lawsuit was filed by Planned Parenthood Federation of America, the Lawyering Project, the ACLU of Indiana, and WilmerHale on behalf of Planned Parenthood Great Northwest, Hawai‘i, Alaska, Indiana, Kentucky, Women’s Med Group Professional Corp, All-Options, Inc, and Dr. Amy Caldwell."

Indiana Right to Life 

"This is big victory in the fight to protect the life of unborn babies, and to protect pregnant mothers from the often lifelong trauma of abortion. This case is also a victory in that Indiana was the first state to pass pro-life legislation since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, making it clear there was never a right to abortion established in the U.S. Constitution. Now the work ahead is to ensure that we, as loving and compassionate Hoosiers, provide the support that pregnant mothers and their babies need to thrive and succeed."

Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita

"The Indiana Supreme Court has just upheld the abortion laws passed by the Indiana General Assembly. We celebrate this day – one long in coming, but morally justified. Thank you to all the warriors who have fought for this day that upholds LIFE."

Indiana Senator Mike Braun

“Life wins in Indiana. I’m proud that with today’s court decision, Indiana will continue to be a national leader for protecting the unborn and saving thousands of lives. I join the countless Hoosiers who helped win this victory for life in celebrating this historic day.”  

Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett

"This ruling is a bad decision that upholds terrible policy, and Indiana women will be less safe as a result. Full access to reproductive healthcare should be a fundamental right and Hoosier women deserve the autonomy to make these personal decisions with their doctors. Just as I fought against these changes in state law, I will continue to fight at the Statehouse for the restoration of full reproductive healthcare in Indianapolis."

Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears 

"Indiana’s ban on abortions strips women of their bodily autonomy and needlessly criminalizes the provision of safe medical care. At a time when law enforcement should be focused on violent crime, this law - which has zero nexus to public safety - encourages unnecessary, intrusive, and unjust investigations targeting private healthcare decisions."

Indiana Democratic Party

“Today is the latest in a line of sad days for the rights of Hoosier women. Over three million women in our state have lost the fundamental right to make decisions about their own bodies and health. Polls have consistently shown that a majority of Hoosiers believe women should have the right to choose. 

The unbalanced supermajority of Republicans in the statehouse are responsible for the consequences that this law will cause. Multitudes of Hoosier women every year will be forced to travel hundreds of extra miles to other states to receive healthcare. The few exceptions provided are likely only exceptions on paper, as bans in other states have shown. Many women will be forced to carry unsafe pregnancies to term because they don’t have the resources to travel, or will be denied care (despite meeting an exception) because of the risk to hospitals facing legal action.

This decision will not stop the resolve of Hoosier Democrats to restore full reproductive rights for all women in Indiana. In the coming months and years, Democratic legislators will continue proposals to reverse this ban, work to expand access to contraceptives, and fight against Republican attempts to criminalize doctors and women. We stand united with the majority of Hoosiers who want all women in our state to have equal rights — and the right to choose.”

House Democratic Leader Phil GiaQuinta

"This is a tremendously sad day for Hoosiers, but House Democrats will continue to fight for the fundamental right of women and girls to control their own destinies. Throughout the course of the 2022 special session, we heard countless women testify that access to abortion allowed them to do the right thing for themselves and their families. Abortion is a serious and emotional matter, and I believe firmly that it is an issue best left to a woman and her doctor, not politicians. The Indiana Republican abortion ban won’t stop abortions, it will simply ban access to safe abortions. Hoosiers don’t want this future for Hoosier women and girls. 

While today’s decision is disheartening, the fight to secure access to safe and legal reproductive healthcare has just begun. With the Republican’s near-total abortion ban now in effect, we will soon see the full scope of the devastation it will bring to Hoosier women and families. The House Democratic Caucus will continue to fight to reinstate a woman’s right to own her own body."

State Rep. Robin Shackleford 

"Today, the Indiana Supreme Court decided to affirm a near-total abortion ban that will affect all Hoosiers, especially women of color. Historically, Black women have been mistreated, abused, and ignored in the reproductive healthcare system.

The Indiana near-total abortion ban strips women of their bodily autonomy and will worsen these ongoing issues.  One of my biggest struggles with this decision is very simple: the government should not be making health decisions for women. The choice to have an abortion is an extremely personal one that should be left up to a woman and her doctor. It's a well-known fact that restricting abortions is not an effective way of stopping abortions, it just stops safe abortions. Restricting access to health care poses a direct threat to Hoosier women. To the women of Indiana, I will continue to be your voice and fight for you."  

State Rep. Blake Johnson

"Today, the Indiana Supreme Court had the opportunity to serve as an important check against an extreme, supermajority agenda that threatens the rights and lives of Hoosier women. They have abdicated that responsibility. My colleagues and I will continue fighting against these laws that suggest one group is guaranteed rights while others are not."  

State Rep. Vanessa Summers

"I’m incredibly disappointed in the Supreme Court’s decision, which will ultimately cost Hoosier women their lives. Unfortunately, I’m not surprised. This is Indiana.

Science and facts tell us that abortion bans don’t prevent abortions, they prevent safe abortions. Women will always seek to have control over their own bodies, regardless of any bans set in place by a government body. With this ban one step closer from taking effect, we need to be prepared to see an influx of women facing unnecessary medical complications and death from either attempting to end their pregnancies on their own, being forced to wait until they are ‘sick enough’ to warrant a life-saving abortion, or simply not being able to access abortion services."

Senate President Pro Tem Rodric Bray

"We set out to pass a bill in the special session that would protect life and support mothers and babies, and that's what we did. It was always our intent to draft a bill that could withstand a constitutional challenge, and I am grateful to see Indiana's Supreme Court recognize that the General Assembly has the constitutional authority to protect unborn life in the womb."

Senate Assistant Minority Leader Shelli Yoder

"I am absolutely heartbroken and furious at the ruling handed down by the Indiana Supreme Court, which upheld all of the worst parts of SB 1. Today, millions of women lost their right to self-determination and were thrust back into the 1970s, a time when they died preventable deaths, sought dangerous and unregulated care, and lacked full access to their own bodies and self-determination. Frankly, I think the Supreme Court has completely failed to contend with the realities of this case: upholding SB 1 means more dead women, more healthcare deserts and a society where women are nothing more than second-class citizens. 

This ruling is a legal endorsement of inequality, of brutality and of an America that no longer holds the values of autonomy and justice dear. Quite simply, this legislation is a failure of democracy—Hoosiers want people to have access to this care, but their will was circumvented by a majority controlled by a vocal minority and special interest groups. A woman should not have to be raped or face death to control her body, to exercise her own right to autonomy. To Statehouse Republicans, I'd ask how close to death or how traumatized a woman has to be in order to access her own rights and to receive care.

Indiana and its residents deserve more than this radical legislation, which shows little regard for Hoosiers' voices or wellbeing. To Hoosier women, the fight for reproductive freedom is not over—if a vocal minority can revoke a long-held right, a vocal majority can restore it."

State Sen. J.D. Ford

"On the weekend of Independence Day, the Indiana Supreme Court robbed Hoosier women of independence, autonomy and liberty, undermining the very American ideals we should have been celebrating. Today, women across Indiana have lost the right to determine their own future, the right to privacy and the right to govern their own bodies. 

Women will not be the only ones who suffer because of shortsighted, radical laws like SEA 1—the erosion of healthcare rights for some means an erosion for all. Indiana has doomed itself to an exodus of doctors, nurses and OB-GYNs, all of whom this state needs desperately. Providers will flee Indiana—where their expertise is clearly not respected or welcomed—and all Indiana citizens and families will be left to grapple with a devastating shortage that affects their ability to get even the simplest and most necessary healthcare. Every single citizen should be furious and worried today: the majority has successfully passed legislation that means your privacy, your body is theirs to control if they wish. They’ve passed this legislation over your protests and despite Hoosiers’ wishes— SEA 1’s ramifications will be severe and long-lasting. I stand beside Hoosier women, beside healthcare providers and beside every citizen, regardless of faith or political party, who reject this law and will fight tooth and nail to overturn it.

I remain hopeful that the RFRA lawsuit will be successful, but the fact remains that every woman should have access to this necessary care and ownership over her own body. I will always fight to ensure the liberty of our citizens."

State Sen. Andrea Hunley

"I condemn, in the strongest possible terms, the Indiana Supreme Court’s ruling and the real damage that will follow the enactment of SEA 1. This abortion ban will inevitably cause damage in all Indiana communities, but the most severe consequences of this law will fall on low-income Hoosiers, Hoosiers of color and other marginalized communities. Everyone should be able to determine their own future and have access to comprehensive healthcare. The rights to life, liberty and privacy should not be bound by gender, skin color or ZIP code—they should be guaranteed to all citizens. The right to an abortion is always guaranteed to Hoosier women with the time, money and connections to seek care outside of the confines of Indiana law. There is no court, no law that can ban abortions—they can only ban the safe administration of abortions and send desperate women to unsafe, underground providers. Abortion laws simply aren’t pro-life—they are only pro-birth.

As a Black mother, I understand the unique fear of being pregnant in Indiana, where Black women die at nearly double the already-high rate of white women. I’ve always hoped my daughters would have a better future and more rights than I do—this ruling is a major setback for that dream, for Hoosier women and for our state at large. I will fight tirelessly for every Hoosier to be guaranteed bodily autonomy and full access to affordable, comprehensive healthcare.”

State Rep. Cherrish Pryor

"Today, my heart is with the women who bravely shared their stories last summer, highlighting the crucial need for abortion access in our state, as well as every woman and girl in Indiana who have now been told that they have no authority over their own bodies. Abortion is health care, plain and simple, and this decision will cost women – disproportionally Black women, women from low-income households and women facing domestic violence – their long-term health, and in some tragic cases, their lives.

As we take time to mourn this loss of human rights in Indiana, the House Democratic Caucus will continue to fight for women and girls in Indiana to maintain autonomy over their bodies and health care."

State Rep. Victoria Garcia Wilburn

"As a woman who has three children, I understand the complexities of pregnancy.  Many women, including myself, are familiar with the complications surrounding miscarriages and access to swift medical attention to ensure our health. The abortion ban passed into law by the Indiana General Assembly in no way reflects the totality of Hoosier's views on abortion. Without a balanced legislature, Hoosiers are subjected to one party's fringe elements and Indiana pays the price."

Indiana Black Legislative Caucus

"This is a dark day for Indiana. Last summer, we heard from countless women and health care providers about how access to safe and legal abortions saves lives, the health of women and allows countless women to remain active members of society and the workforce. With the ban now in effect, I’m terrified to think about the effect this will have on women, girls and public health outcomes in Indiana.

We cannot forget that this near-total abortion ban will disproportionally impact African American women and women of color. Indiana already has the third highest rate of maternal mortality in the nation, and the rates for Black women are much higher than the average rate for Hoosier women overall. We simply cannot afford to do anything that will put pregnant Hoosier women at greater risk for health complications, and yet, here we are. We in the House Democratic Caucus and the IBLC will continue to do everything in our power to reinstate bodily autonomy for Hoosier women and girls."

The right to control one’s own body is the right to control one’s own destiny,” State Rep. Earl Harris Jr. (D-East Chicago), chair of the IBLC, added. “This decision from the state Supreme Court is disheartening, but I and my colleagues remain committed to helping every Hoosier –regardless of gender, race or income – access the health care that is best for themselves and their families, and to ensure that women are not second-class citizens in Indiana.”

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