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This fact brief was originally published as an experiment to test the concepts behind fact briefs.
Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of useful information in fact briefs like this one, not all of them reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.

Is there a federal ban on late-stage abortions?

By Austin Tannenbaum
NO

There is no outright ban on late-stage abortions at the federal level, although most states do not permit the practice.

In 1973, the Supreme Court ruled in Roe v. Wade that Americans have a constitutional right to abortion, but that states could prohibit the practice at the point of "fetal viability" — when a fetus can survive outside the womb, typically at 24 to 28 weeks — with exceptions required for the life and health of the pregnant person.

Since then, the only federal abortion restriction that has been enacted and upheld is a partial-abortion ban, which makes illegal the termination of a fetus already partially outside the womb.

Forty-three states prohibit abortions after a certain point in pregnancy, except when the pregnancy threatens the individual's life or health. A few states also make exceptions for pregnancies resulting from rape or incest.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR
Between 2020 and 2022, under close editorial supervision, Gigafact contracted a group of freelance writers and editors to test the concepts for fact briefs and provide inputs to our software development process. We call this effort Gigafact Foundry. Over the course of these two years, Gigafact Foundry writers published over 1500 fact briefs in response to claims they found online. Their important work forms the basis of Gigafact formats and editorial guidelines, and is available to the public on Gigafact.org. Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of relevant information to be found, not all fact briefs produced by Gigafact Foundry reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date and need to be looked at with fresh eyes, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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