Opposition to State Anti-Abortion Legislation Efforts
Adopted at the 87th Annual Meeting in 2019
WHEREAS, the sole purpose of these laws and bills are to unsettle existing law, create confusion, and end legal abortion nationwide despite potential dangers to the health of women; and
WHEREAS, women may face serious risks to their health during pregnancy, and have the legal right to make their own reproductive decisions; and
WHEREAS, more women die from pregnancy-related complications in the United States annually than any other developed country; and
WHEREAS, anti-abortion laws and bills are increasingly becoming more extreme and dangerous as states with significantly high mortality rates for women, Arkansas, Louisiana, Missouri, North Dakota, Georgia, Ohio, Mississippi, Kentucky, and Alabama have recently passed the most restrictive anti-abortion laws; and
WHEREAS, instead of addressing the maternal and infant mortality crises, these states have banned all abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected€" or as early as six weeks; and
WHEREAS, Georgia, which has the highest number of maternal deaths in the country, passed a bill that subjects women who get abortions from a medical provider or terminate their own pregnancies to life imprisonment and the death penalty; and
WHEREAS, all anti-abortion laws and bills may deter women from getting legal abortions, even when necessary to protect their health,
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, the U.S. Conference of Mayors opposes State anti-abortion legislation efforts.