North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum on Monday signed a contentious near-total ban on abortions in the state. A previous bill was temporarily blocked by the state Supreme Court. (Mike Mccleary/AP)
Gov. Doug Burgum of North Dakota has signed into law a near-total ban on abortion, becoming the latest Republican governor to adopt stringent antiabortion measures after the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
The law enacted Monday, one of the strictest in the country, will permit abortions only within the first six weeks of pregnancy and only in cases of rape and incest. The law also makes an exception in the case of “serious” physical health risk to the patient. Many health experts argue that six weeks is too early a window for women to detect and decide on an abortion.
In a statement, Burgum said the bill “clarifies and refines existing state law” to reaffirm North Dakota as a “pro-life state,” the Associated Press reported.
The development comes in the wake of a recent decision by the state’s top court to uphold a lower court’s order blocking an earlier ban on abortions as it hears a challenge to its constitutionality.
The ruling in March stemmed from a case filed by abortion providers last year through the Center for Reproductive Rights, an abortion rights group that argued the state’s constitution guarantees right to life and liberty, which should protect abortion rights.
North Dakota does not have any abortion clinics; the last one moved to Minnesota in August, The Washington Post has reported.
North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum on Monday signed a contentious near-total ban on abortions in the state. A previous bill was temporarily blocked by the state Supreme Court. (Mike Mccleary/AP)
Gov. Doug Burgum of North Dakota has signed into law a near-total ban on abortion, becoming the latest Republican governor to adopt stringent antiabortion measures after the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
The law enacted Monday, one of the strictest in the country, will permit abortions only within the first six weeks of pregnancy and only in cases of rape and incest. The law also makes an exception in the case of “serious” physical health risk to the patient. Many health experts argue that six weeks is too early a window for women to detect and decide on an abortion.
In a statement, Burgum said the bill “clarifies and refines existing state law” to reaffirm North Dakota as a “pro-life state,” the Associated Press reported.
The development comes in the wake of a recent decision by the state’s top court to uphold a lower court’s order blocking an earlier ban on abortions as it hears a challenge to its constitutionality.
The ruling in March stemmed from a case filed by abortion providers last year through the Center for Reproductive Rights, an abortion rights group that argued the state’s constitution guarantees right to life and liberty, which should protect abortion rights.
North Dakota does not have any abortion clinics; the last one moved to Minnesota in August, The Washington Post has reported.
North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum on Monday signed a contentious near-total ban on abortions in the state. A previous bill was temporarily blocked by the state Supreme Court. (Mike Mccleary/AP)
Gov. Doug Burgum of North Dakota has signed into law a near-total ban on abortion, becoming the latest Republican governor to adopt stringent antiabortion measures after the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
The law enacted Monday, one of the strictest in the country, will permit abortions only within the first six weeks of pregnancy and only in cases of rape and incest. The law also makes an exception in the case of “serious” physical health risk to the patient. Many health experts argue that six weeks is too early a window for women to detect and decide on an abortion.
In a statement, Burgum said the bill “clarifies and refines existing state law” to reaffirm North Dakota as a “pro-life state,” the Associated Press reported.
The development comes in the wake of a recent decision by the state’s top court to uphold a lower court’s order blocking an earlier ban on abortions as it hears a challenge to its constitutionality.
The ruling in March stemmed from a case filed by abortion providers last year through the Center for Reproductive Rights, an abortion rights group that argued the state’s constitution guarantees right to life and liberty, which should protect abortion rights.
North Dakota does not have any abortion clinics; the last one moved to Minnesota in August, The Washington Post has reported.
North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum on Monday signed a contentious near-total ban on abortions in the state. A previous bill was temporarily blocked by the state Supreme Court. (Mike Mccleary/AP)
Gov. Doug Burgum of North Dakota has signed into law a near-total ban on abortion, becoming the latest Republican governor to adopt stringent antiabortion measures after the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
The law enacted Monday, one of the strictest in the country, will permit abortions only within the first six weeks of pregnancy and only in cases of rape and incest. The law also makes an exception in the case of “serious” physical health risk to the patient. Many health experts argue that six weeks is too early a window for women to detect and decide on an abortion.
In a statement, Burgum said the bill “clarifies and refines existing state law” to reaffirm North Dakota as a “pro-life state,” the Associated Press reported.
The development comes in the wake of a recent decision by the state’s top court to uphold a lower court’s order blocking an earlier ban on abortions as it hears a challenge to its constitutionality.
The ruling in March stemmed from a case filed by abortion providers last year through the Center for Reproductive Rights, an abortion rights group that argued the state’s constitution guarantees right to life and liberty, which should protect abortion rights.
North Dakota does not have any abortion clinics; the last one moved to Minnesota in August, The Washington Post has reported.
