A group of demonstrators protested abortion restrictions on the steps of the state Capitol in Bismarck, N.D., on March 25.
States are becoming increasingly polarized over abortion, as some legislatures pass ever-tighter restrictions on the procedure while others consider stronger legal protections for it, advocates on both sides say.
In March, Arkansas passed a law prohibiting most abortions after 12 weeks of pregnancy, giving it the strictest laws against the procedure in the country. It was quickly surpassed by North Dakota, which last week banned the procedure as early as six weeks into a pregnancy.
The moves come after a record number of antiabortion bills were enacted in legislative sessions in 2011 and 2012, giving some states stricter regulation of the procedure including curbs on clinics and chemically induced abortions.
At the same time, Washington state is weighing a measure that would require all insurers doing business in new health insurance exchanges created by the Affordable Care Act to reimburse women for abortions. And New York Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo is seeking to update his state's laws to clarify that women can obtain an abortion late in pregnancy if they have a medical reason.
The Guttmacher Institute, a think-tank supportive of abortion rights, says its legislative tracking shows hardening positions in states that are broadly favorable to abortion rights and those that are opposed, as they adopt an increasing number of laws governing access to the procedure. The institute's findings also note a "shrinking middle ground" over the past decade as fewer states maintain a mixed set of policies.
Americans United for Life, a group that crafts model legislation aimed at curbing abortion, ranks states based on how many laws they have regarding the procedure and draws similar conclusions about each state as the Guttmacher Institute does.
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Close"We are seeing an incredible acceleration in the speed and in the breadth of the restrictions on abortion that are passing," said Nancy Northup, president of the Center for Reproductive Rights, which supports abortion rights and challenges some of the state laws in court.
The states' positions are at odds with overall American public opinion about abortion, which is more moderate and less clear-cut. Polling conducted for The Wall Street Journal and NBC News earlier this year found that seven in 10 Americans say they support abortion being legal. But a similar proportion of respondents say there are at least some situations in which they believe abortion should be illegal.
State legislators seeking to limit access to abortion have the backing of a 1992 Supreme Court decision, Planned Parenthood v. Casey, confirming states can restrict the procedure in ways that fall short of banning it entirely. In recent years, more abortion opponents have turned their attention to state legislatures, especially after gains by conservative lawmakers in 2010 elections.
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