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Press Release
NARAL Pro-Choice America Condemns Anti-Choice Lawmakers in Kentucky for Overriding Governor’s Veto and Enacting Sweeping Abortion Restrictions
For Immediate Release: Thursday, April 14, 2022
Contact: [email protected]
Washington, DC — On Wednesday, Republican state legislators in Kentucky voted to override a veto from Governor Andy Beshear in order to enact an extreme and sweeping anti-choice law (HB 3) that includes a number of provisions attacking abortion access, including attacks on medication abortion care as well as a 15-week ban on abortion. If the law goes into effect, it is expected to effectively ban abortion in the state.
NARAL Pro-Choice America President Mini Timmaraju released the following statement in response:
“It’s disgraceful that anti-choice lawmakers in Kentucky are pushing through this cruel and extreme attempt to block abortion access in the state. This law is the latest piece of evidence that lawmakers across the country who are hostile to abortion are ramping up their attacks on reproductive freedom as we await a decision from the U.S. Supreme Court in a case that directly challenges Roe v. Wade. We’re grateful for the advocates working on the ground in Kentucky to fight back against these dangerous restrictions, as well as the leadership of Gov. Beshear. All Kentuckians should have the freedom to make their own decisions about pregnancy and abortion—and the anti-choice lawmakers who rammed through these restrictions are undermining this fundamental freedom.”
In 2019, NARAL endorsed Governor Beshear in his run for governor. In the weeks leading up to the election in Kentucky, NARAL ran an independent expenditure including public polling and a five-figure ad buy to slam then-Gov. Bevin for his stance on reproductive freedom and support for criminalizing abortion. NARAL also turned out members to canvass, make calls, and volunteer for the Beshear campaign.
The stakes for reproductive freedom are higher than ever before. In the coming months, the Supreme Court will rule in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization—a case concerning Mississippi’s 15-week abortion ban that directly challenges Roe v. Wade and threatens to end the constitutional right to abortion. If the Court upholds Mississippi’s ban, the constitutional right to abortion will cease to exist as we know it. Should Roe fall, 28 states would likely take action to prohibit abortion outright. Of those, 13 states—including Kentucky—already have “trigger bans” in place, which would automatically ban abortion.
Even as Roe stands, state lawmakers across the country are working harder than ever to roll back abortion access and find new and increasingly cruel ways to ban and restrict abortion. Anti-choice lawmakers have already introduced over 500 restrictions on abortion this year, including bans on abortion at 15 weeks of pregnancy, bans modeled after Texas’ vigilante-enforced ban on abortion, and restrictions on medication abortion care. The people hurt most by abortion restrictions are those who already face barriers to accessing the care they need—including women; Black, Indigenous, and people of color; those working to make ends meet; LGBTQ+ people; immigrants; young people; those living in rural communities; and people with disabilities.
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For over 50 years, NARAL Pro-Choice America has fought to protect and advance reproductive freedom at the federal and state levels—including access to abortion care, birth control, pregnancy and post-partum care, and paid family leave—for every body. NARAL is powered by its more than 2.5 million members from every state and congressional district in the country, representing the 8 in 10 Americans who support legal abortion.