COLUMBUS, Ohio — The abortion debate in Ohio continues after Friday’s ruling temporarily suspended the 24-hour waiting period.
This raises the question: Is Ohio’s ruling consistent with other states?
What you need to know
- Anyone seeking an abortion in the state of Ohio no longer has to wait 24 hours after the initial consultation about the procedure
- The ruling comes after Ohio voters passed the first point last year.
- According to Guttmacher, waiting period laws vary from state to state
Jessie Hill, cooperating attorney for the ACLU of Ohio, said Friday’s tentative decision was a step in the right direction.
Previously, Ohio voters passed the first bill to add reproductive rights to the state constitution last year, but Hill said laws on waiting periods vary from state to state.
“It’s really a mixed picture,” she said, “and things are about to change.”
Guttmacher says abortion is illegal in 14 states and 12 others have mandatory waiting periods, but Hill says those waiting periods usually place a burden on certain groups of people.
“People who may have difficulty paying for transportation,” Hill said, “who may have to forego wages if they can’t work because of an extra trip to the clinic, who have to arrange child care. That includes people on low incomes and all sorts of groups of people who otherwise have difficulty accessing health care – for example, people with disabilities.”
But supporters of waiting periods say they are important because once an abortion has taken place, there is no going back.
“It’s a law that really means something to people and gives women time to think and reflect on what resources are available in their community and whether or not they should make what could be the most consequential decision of their lives,” said Peter Range, senior fellow at the Center for Christian Virtue.
Range explained the reason why more than half of the states either have a ban or require women to wait after their first consultation.
“The point of a 24-hour waiting period is so that the woman who is considering an abortion knows all the resources available in her community that can help her during her pregnancy,” he said. “She also learns exactly how the abortion procedure will work. So she knows exactly what she’s getting into.”
Attorney General Dave Yost’s office said it would appeal the ruling. Hill said the case would likely end up before the Ohio Supreme Court.
