President Joe Biden signed an executive order to help protect women’s access to abortion and contraception across the United States, after the Supreme Court last month overturned a 1973 ruling that guaranteed abortion rights nationwide. .
What does the presidential decree on abortion intend?
Biden’s actions try to mitigate some potential penalties that women seeking abortions could face due to the Supreme Court ruling in about a dozen states that have already imposed strict limits or outright bans on pregnancy termination. About a dozen other states are already preparing similar measures.
How does it work?
The presidential order directs the Department of Health and Human Services to take steps to protect and expand access to “medical abortion” approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA, for its acronym in English), the White House said.
It also directs the department to ensure that women have access to emergency medical care, family planning services, and contraception, including intrauterine devices.
In addition, the Attorney General and the White House Counsel will convene pro bono attorneys and other organizations to provide legal advice to patients seeking an abortion, as well as abortion providers.
However, there is no guarantee that the courts will grant these claims in states that have already taken steps to ban abortion.
Why can’t the president act outside the Supreme Court?
Biden admitted the limitations of the Presidency in the face of the Supreme Court ruling. The White House cannot restore the right to abortion where it is already prohibited or limited.
The president’s hands are also tied by the Hyde Amendment, a provision in federal law that prevents the government from paying for abortions except in cases of rape or incest, or to save the life of the mother.
Wasn’t there a law that protected abortion in the US?
There has never been a federal law protecting women’s right to abortion across the country. Therefore, states have the power to pass their own laws in this regard.
So what was Roe Vs Wade?
Roe v. Wade or Roe Vs Wade was a 1973 court case in which the Supreme Court ruled that the United States Constitution protects a pregnant woman’s freedom to choose an abortion without undue government restrictions.
Back then, the Supreme Court issued a 7-2 decision ruling that the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution provides a “right to privacy” that protects a woman’s right pregnant woman to choose whether or not she wants an abortion.
Could a federal law be enacted allowing abortion?
A federal law would settle the matter, but only Congress can enact laws and in the current situation the forces for and against on Capitol Hill are too even for a bill to take hold in the chambers.
Republicans are generally more opposed to abortion rights, given their conservative base. Democrats support him, which is why Biden called for going to the polls in the mid-term elections in November to increase his strength in Congress.
“The challenge for the nation is to vote,” Biden said this Friday when signing the decree at the White House. “Vote, vote, vote!”
Are there other alternatives?
Some activists and lawmakers proposed to the president that he establish abortion services on federal or Native Nations land, where state laws do not apply, but the White House said such ideas were not feasible in practice and could be more dangerous for patients. .
Others have even pushed Biden to take more risky actions, such as declaring a public health emergency to expand access to abortion.
* With AP information.
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