Saturday, May. 11, 2024
Does Colorado allow abortions even after birth?
Neither Colorado nor any state permits doctors to end a baby’s life after it’s born.
Birth is where the right to an abortion ends in Colorado. Anyone who “knowingly causes the death of a child” could face first-degree murder, according to state statutes.
Murder is illegal under federal law. The Born-Alive Infants Protection Act of 2002 extends all U.S. legal rights to “every infant member of the species homo sapiens who is born alive at any stage of development.” A ban on partial-birth abortions was upheld by the Supreme Court in 2007.
Colorado is one of seven states without limits on when an abortion can occur during a pregnancy.
Less than 1% of abortions are performed after five months and involve severe fetal anomalies or health risks to the mother.
In 2022, Colorado affirmed the “fundamental right” to an abortion following the repeal of Roe v. Wade.
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
- Colorado Legislature Reproductive Equity Health Act
- KFF Abortions Later in Pregnancy in a Post-Dobbs Era
- National Library of Medicine US Supreme Court approves ban on “partial birth abortion”
- United States Code Homicide statute
- US Congress Born-Alive Infants Protection Act of 2002
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Fact briefs are bite-sized, well-sourced explanations that offer clear "yes" or "no" answers to questions, confusions, and unsupported claims circulating online. They rely on publicly available data and documents, often from the original source. Fact briefs are written and published by Gigafact contributor publications.
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