“Your Body Is a Battleground”
Legal Barriers to Reproductive Healthcare
Our country has a long history of gendered legislation and legal precedent negatively impacting women’s rights and agency, especially of reproduction.
From the first abortion bans in the mid-1800s to a century’s worth of restrictions on birth control availability, women in the United States have historically been granted little control over their reproductive lives. And once rights are granted, the trend is to rein them in, the arc of progress following the curves of the bodies being regulated.
Now, in the wake of Dobbs, state-based laws restricting abortion access are proliferating, but they affect so much more than abortion. It turns out that legislating one pillar of healthcare impacts the entire edifice, and maternity care deserts multiply where abortion bans are strictest. States with the harshest abortion bans also tend to have the weakest societal supports for pregnant women and mothers, further depleting one’s sense of agency in the world.
Thus, the battle wages on over our bodies, their value, and their state-sanctioned purpose.
Heartbreak
Karli Fairbanks
National Laws,
Rulings and Events
Affecting Reproductive Healthcare
First U.S. Law Banning Abortion
Connecticut passes the country’s first law banning medicinal abortion after the “quickening” stage (when fetal movement is detected). Punishment is a life sentence for the provider. The law is created in response to a sex scandal involving a prominent preacher, a young woman he seduced, and the pregnancy he sought to abort to protect his reputation.
1821
Formation of the American Medical Association (AMA)
In 1847, a group of doctors form the AMA, becoming the male-dominated authority on medical practices. The group seeks to phase out the work of midwives and nurses, even though the AMA is composed of physicians who lack expertise in pregnancy and reproductive health.
1847
AMA’s Anti-Abortion Campaign Begins
Led by Horatio Storer, the American Medical Association campaigns to make abortion illegal in the United States. “We are the physical guardians of women,” the group’s 1859 report on criminal abortion stated.
1857
The Pope Weighs In
The Catholic Church’s Pope Pius IX declares abortions at any stage of pregnancy punishable by excommunication.
1869
The Comstock Act
The law makes it a federal crime to sell or distribute obscene materials—including pornography, contraceptives, and abortifacients—through the mail or across state lines. The law is drafted by Anthony Comstock, a devout Christian who believed all sexual activity is a sin unless it was marriage-bound and procreative. The law makes family planning especially difficult for women in the rural West who can only access birth control methods via mail.
1873
Criminalization and Vilification of Abortion
A “century of criminalization” begins, not ending until Roe v. Wade in 1973. Laws restricting abortion access become the norm. By 1880, all states have laws to restrict abortion—with exceptions in some states for the life or health of the patient.
1880
Deaths from Illegal, Unsafe Abortions
By 1910, abortion is not only restricted but outright illegal at every stage in pregnancy in every state in the country. This sends the practice underground, which results in a high death toll. Unsafe, illegal abortion is the cause of death for nearly 2,700 women in 1930—almost one out of every five recorded maternal deaths that year.
1930
Doctors May Distribute Contraceptives
U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rules in favor of amending the Comstock laws in United States v. One Package, making it legal for doctors to distribute contraceptives across state lines.
1936
The Pill Is Born
Enovid, better known as “The Pill,” gains FDA approval, making it the nation’s first oral contraceptive. The IUD is granted similar approval in 1968.
1960
Abortion in the Media
In 1962, a pregnant TV host who ingested thalidomide cannot obtain a legal abortion in the United States. The media tracks her journey to get an abortion in Sweden, and 52% of Americans support her.
1962
Right to Privacy Appears
The Supreme Court rules in Griswold v. Connecticut that the U.S. Constitution protects marital privacy rights, striking down Connecticut’s contraception ban for married people. The decision introduces the right to privacy argument, which will later be applied in Roe v. Wade.
1965
1967-
1973
State-by-State Repeal of Abortion Bans
Alaska, Hawaii, New York, and Washington repeal their abortion bans entirely, while 13 others enact reforms that expand exceptions, including the physical or mental health of a patient, fetal abnormalities, and when the pregnancy results from rape or incest.
1,000,000 Criminal Acts
In the single year before Roe, more than one million women have abortions, almost all of them "criminal" and therefore dangerous.
1972
Roe v. Wade
The U.S. Supreme Court rules 7-2 that a woman’s right to an abortion is protected under the Constitution’s 14th Amendment. In particular, the Court recognizes the constitutional right to privacy “is broad enough to encompass a woman’s decision whether or not to terminate her pregnancy.” The decision confers a full right to an abortion in the first trimester, allows regulation in the second trimester, and gives states the ability to ban abortion in the third trimester, after fetal viability. This is the advent of the arbitrary “viability line.
1973
The Hyde Amendment
The Hyde Amendment prevents federal dollars from being used in government insurance programs like Medicaid for abortion services. The legislation is created by Rep. Henry Hyde and disproportionately affects low-income and minority populations from accessing abortion care.
1976
Removing Abortion Consent Requirements
In a 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court, in Planned Parenthood v. Danforth, strikes down parts of a Missouri statute requiring consent of a married woman’s husband or a minor’s parent before she can receive an abortion.
1976
Planned Parenthood v. Casey
While the case reaffirms the Constitutional protection of the right to abortion, Casey opens the door to myriad laws that are less than absolute prohibitions on abortion. Following Casey, state politicians pass numerous medically unnecessary abortion restrictions across the country (including targeted restrictions on abortion provider (TRAP) laws) that pose significant obstacles to abortion access.
1992
Other Pills are Born
In 1998, the FDA approves Preven, better known as the “morning after pill,” emergency contraception that, when taken within 72 hours of unprotected sex, causes a 75 percent reduction in the risk of pregnancy. In 2000, the agency approves mifepristone, the “abortion pill,” after a decade-long campaign by activists and healthcare providers.
1998
& 2000
Abortion Restrictions Proliferate
More than 1,074 abortion restrictions have been passed nationwide since Roe, slowly chipping away at access to the procedure.
2016
Texas Six-Week Ban
Texas implements a dangerous law called S.B. 8, or The Texas Heartbeat Act, banning abortion at approximately six weeks of pregnancy—before many people even know they’re pregnant. The act includes the right for any private citizen to sue any person who “aids or abets” an abortion once a fetal heartbeat is detected, which is known as the law’s “bounty hunter” provision.
2021
Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization
The Supreme Court’s seismic 6-3 decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization overturns Roe v. Wade, removing the constitutional right to an abortion. The ruling leaves abortion laws up to the states.
2022
Idaho Laws,
Rulings and Events
Affecting Reproductive Healthcare
Abortion Restrictions Before Statehood
Idaho drafts its original abortion statute at the First Territorial Session in Lewiston, 25 years before Idaho becomes a state and drafts its state constitution. The law allows for abortion to save the woman’s life, but not for rape or incest. Over the next century, Idaho successfully prosecutes and imprisons only six people for crimes related to the abortion statute. Because of “popular tolerance” of abortion, prosecutors found it difficult to get convictions in cases where the woman did not die as a result of the procedure.
1864
Advertising Contraceptives
Anyone advertising abortifacients or contraceptives is made guilty of a felony. Hence the prevalence in advertisements of euphemisms for pregnancy like “a disease peculiar to females” and abortion as “removing a blockage” or “restoring the menses.” This Territorial Legislature also enacted criminal penalties for women seeking an abortion.
1887
Manslaughter
Authorities often turned a blind eye to the practice of abortion, understanding its necessity and general acceptance amongst the public. However, there were times when certain physicians, midwives, or women could be made an example of as a reminder to keep abortion unseen. Physician E.J. Alcorn from Kootenai County, for instance, was convicted of manslaughter for the crime of performing an abortion from which his patient, Cora Burke, ultimately died. Alcorn appealed to the Idaho Supreme Court, where Chief Justice Ralph P. Quarles wrote, “The crime for which appellant has been convicted is one of the worst known to the law. [It] violates decency, the best interests of society, the divine law, the law of nature, the criminal statutes of this state, and is not only destructive of life unborn, but places in jeopardy the life of a human being — the pregnant woman.”
1901
Targeting Physicians
Idaho passes a law that demands the revocation of a physician’s license if he or she is caught performing, aiding or abetting an abortion procedure.
1950
Roe Hits Idaho
Idaho legislators from both parties discuss the need to comply with the new constitutional protection. Once they learn they will have to heed Roe v. Wade, they write the most restrictive abortion law possible, to avoid the state becoming “an abortion mill.” The new law is replete with a trigger provision to outlaw abortions if Roe is overturned.
1973
Gov. Cecil Andrus
The National Right-to-Life Committee lobbies heavily in Idaho for a bill that will impose the most restrictive abortion laws in the country. Nearly all abortions would be banned. Governor Cecil Andrus vetoes the bill, citing three things wrong with the bill: the exceptions are too narrow; the bill comes from too far away, crafted by out-of-state interests, and it is unconstitutional and would cost the state a fortune in the courts.
1990
Failed Restrictions
Idaho passes laws—and later sees them rescinded—restricting abortion access, including one requiring parental permission for minors.
1998
Conscientious Objections
A law is enacted protecting healthcare workers from providing an abortion if it goes against their religious or moral beliefs.
2010
Attacks on Telehealth
Doctors are prohibited from prescribing abortion medication remotely. They must be physically present for the procedure. The law is soon repealed.
2015
Trigger Ban
Gov. Brad Little signs Idaho’s trigger ban into law, outlawing nearly all abortions should Roe v. Wade fall. The law has limited exceptions for rape and incest (with an accompanying police report), and the life of the mother. There are no exceptions for the mother’s health or for fatal fetal anomalies. Anyone who performs an abortion is guilty of a felony.
2020
Don’t Say the A-Word
The No Public Funds for Abortion Act passes, prohibiting the use of public funds to “promote” or “counsel in favor of” abortion. The law poses challenges for universities and those providing reproductive health counseling, limiting the speech of educators and care providers alike. In the wake of this, University of Idaho officials announce they will no longer offer birth control services.
2021
Bounty Hunting
A Texas-style abortion ban is passed, outlawing abortion after six weeks and deputizing citizens to bring lawsuits against physicians who perform abortions. Immediate relations of the fetus can sue a doctor, thus incentivizing the medical surveillance of pregnant people and allowing abusers greater control over their pregnant partners.
2022
Abortion Trafficking
Idaho makes it a crime for an adult to recruit, harbor or transport a pregnant minor within Idaho to obtain an abortion (including an abortion out-of-state) without the consent of the parent or guardian. Violations result in prison sentences of two to five years.
2023
Referrals Are a Crime
Raul Labrador issues an opinion stating that Idaho abortion laws prohibit medical providers from referring patients across state lines for abortion. He claims that it is illegal to “assist” in the procurement of an abortion and defines assistance as “to give support or aid.” He later withdraws the opinion, but physicians remain fearful of mentioning abortion options to patients.
2023
Contraceptives Protected
Gov. Brad Little signs House Bill 374, which states that birth control methods—including the pill and IUDs—are not considered violations of the state's abortion law. Duh.
2023
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Your Body Is a Battleground
Legal barriers to reproductive healthcare over time.
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Women Weaving Community
Historical contributions of women to our community.
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Maternal Mortality in the US
A look at maternal mortality rates and contributing factors.
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Shame, Stigma, Silence
The moral and social dimensions of gynecology.
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Undervalued, Under-treated, Under-Studied
How we systemically undervalue women's healthcare.
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(CO)Operation
How different care options play out in one's life.
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Map of Gynecologia
The previously uncharted wilderness of Women’s healthcare.
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The Future
What do you want to see for the future in the state of Idaho?
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BGH Birth Stories
Personal accounts and birth stories at Bonner General Hospital.
