abortion ban

The South Carolina Supreme Court upheld a ban on most abortions this week but left undecided the question of when, exactly, the “fetal heartbeat” limit begins during pregnancy. Doctors practicing under the strict law cannot punt on that question.

Prenatal doctors in the state say the newly upheld six-week abortion limit is hard to take. They don't feel non-medical legislators should be the ones deciding medical practice.

The state Supreme Court's upholding of a six-week ban on most abortions has abortion-rights advocates not even sure whether there is a next step.

The new all-male S.C. Supreme Court has upheld the state's six-week abortion ban roughly eight months after ruling a previous and similar ban unconstitutional.

July 1, 2023 — The latest on the state Supreme Court action regarding the recently-passed six-week abortion ban; a report from First Lady Dr. Jill Biden's visit to Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island; major infrastructure updates; and much more.

A potential swing vote on the newly all-male South Carolina Supreme Court grilled lawyers over whether patients have enough time to get an abortion after learning of their pregnancy as the justices weighed whether a new ban is similarly unconstitutional to one that got shot down earlier this year. The right to an abortion in South Carolina was back before the state's highest court Tuesday as Republicans try to restore the ban. A 3-2 majority in January tossed a similar law that banned abortion once cardiac activity is detected. Republican Gov. Henry McMaster recently signed into law a similar ban that starts once cardiac activity is detected. That restriction has been placed on hold as the case involving the new ban moves through the courts.

A judge has put a temporary halt to South Carolina's new law banning most abortions around six weeks of pregnancy until the state Supreme Court can review the measure. The ruling Friday by Judge Clifton Newman came just about 24 hours after Gov. Henry McMaster signed the bill. The decision means South Carolina reverts back to a ban around 20 weeks. The new law is similar to a ban on abortion once cardiac activity can be detected that lawmakers passed in 2021.

Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley on Wednesday pledged to sign a federal ban on abortion but again did not set down a marker for what timeline such a proposal should encompass. Haley suggested during remarks in Manchester, New Hampshire, that passing one would be highly unlikely without significantly more Republicans in Congress. The former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations said "no one has been honest" about how difficult a ban could be to achieve.

May 20, 2023 — An extensive recap of the nearly 24 hours of debate this week in the South Carolina House of Representatives over a six-week abortion ban bill. The House approved the legislative, which now heads to the state Senate.

South Carolina is a step closer to having a six-week abortion law again.