Indiana has adopted a highly restrictive law prohibiting abortion. It contains a narrow exception for a pregnancy resulting from rape or incest, which may be terminated within the first 10 weeks of post-fertilization age. Another exception applies to a pregnancy involving a lethal fetal anomaly, which may be terminated within the first 20 weeks of post-fertilization age.
However, the most notable exception involves a situation in which an abortion is necessary to prevent a serious health risk to the pregnant woman, or to save her life. A separate statute defines a “serious health risk” very narrowly as a serious risk of a substantial and irreversible physical impairment of a major bodily function. The definition explicitly excludes psychological or emotional conditions, as well as a risk of self-harm or suicide. In addition, the main abortion statute provides that the procedure may be performed only in certain specified facilities.
The Indiana Supreme Court upheld the ban last summer, while noting that the state constitution protects the right to an abortion when necessary to protect a pregnant woman from a serious health risk. This year, various abortion providers challenged the law more narrowly. They sought to expand the medical exemption, while removing the limits on where abortions may be performed.
Last week, a judge in the Monroe County Circuit Court denied these requests. The judge noted that doctors face difficult decisions when considering an abortion, since an unauthorized procedure could expose them to criminal penalties. But she found no violation of the state constitution and rejected the plaintiffs’ argument that doctors might wait too long to perform an abortion when a medical condition arises. The judge pointed out that the statute allows doctors to use their “reasonable medical judgment.”
This case is not the only challenge confronting the Indiana abortion ban. Another lawsuit seeks to establish an exemption from the ban for people who object on religious grounds. The plaintiffs in this case have prevailed in the trial court and the Indiana Court of Appeals. However, the state recently has appealed the decision to the Indiana Supreme Court.
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