North Dakota Governor Signs Extreme Abortion Ban Bill
March 26, 2013
Today, I released the following statement on North Dakota Governor Dalrymple’s approval of the most extreme abortion ban bill in the country:
Today, North Dakota Governor Jack Dalrymple signed the most extreme ban on abortion in the entire country. This bill criminalizes abortion care very early in pregnancy—before most women are even aware that they are pregnant— and would ban nearly all abortion care in North Dakota.
We are outraged by Governor Dalrymple’s complete disregard for the health and well-being of women in North Dakota. As we have seen in other countries and in the United States before Roe v. Wade, banning abortion doesn’t decrease the need for abortion care, it just forces women to jeopardize their health and sometimes risk their lives to obtain the abortion care they need.
Furthermore, this ban is blatantly unconstitutional. The Supreme Court has consistently held that states may not ban abortion care before viability. This bill is nothing more than a clear attempt to overturn Roe v. Wade.
Politicians should not pass laws that disregard women’s constitutional protections or the reality that women need and deserve access to safe, legal abortion care. We support NAF member Red River Women’s Clinic’s efforts to continue to provide high quality abortion care for women in North Dakota.