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Ohio prepares to establish six-week abortion ban if U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade

By: Karen Kasler | Statehouse News Bureau
Posted on: Monday, May 9, 2022

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COLUMBUS, Ohio (Statehouse News Bureau) — Ohio will almost certainly have strict limitations on abortion in short order if the U.S. Supreme Court does as a draft opinion published last week says and allows states to set their own regulations on the procedure.

That’s even if Republican lawmakers haven’t passed the so-called “trigger ban” on abortion that they’re considering.

Attorney General Dave Yost, a Republican, said the six-week ban was halted by a federal court because of the Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey rulings that upheld abortion rights.

“If Roe and Casey do in fact get overturned, then I would anticipate that we would move to lift that stay and that law passed by the general assembly would become effective,” Yost said.

Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, has said he would sign a total abortion ban that would be triggered by the overturning of Roe, which would make the six-week abortion ban moot. Thirteen states already have “trigger” bans in place.

DeWine signed the bill in 2019, after former Gov. John Kasich vetoed a previous version of it in 2018, just before leaving office. DeWine wouldn’t say then if he would sign a total ban on abortion, only that “We need to wait and see what happens in the United States Supreme Court before we do anything else.”

That was before the rushed appointment by former president Donald Trump of Amy Coney Barrett in 2020 following the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Ginsburg was appointed by former president Bill Clinton in 1993.

Several states also have what have been called “zombie” abortion bans — laws that were on the books when the Roe decision came down in 1973. They haven’t been enforced, but haven’t been repealed either. Those could be revived if Roe is overturned. Yost said he’s unaware if Ohio has such laws. Right now, abortion is legal in Ohio during the first 20 weeks of pregnancy.

That “trigger ban” is sponsored by a third of the Republicans in the Ohio House, but there’s only been one hearing. The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision will likely come next month.