Indiana State Senate Passes Abortion Ban, First Since ‘Dobbs’ Decision

The Indiana State Senate passed a bill that bans nearly all abortions, the first such ban to be advanced after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.

In a special session Saturday, the State Senate passed Senate Bill 1, which bans abortions from the moment of conception. The bill classifies abortion as a felony, although it makes exceptions for rape and incest, and to protect the life of the mother. The bill also empowers the state attorney general to prosecute abortion cases at a county level if a county prosecutor categorically refuses to prosecute abortions. The bill narrowly passed the Senate, 26-20.

The bill prohibits all abortions, with few exceptions. First, an abortion is legal if “[t]he physician determines, based on reasonable medical judgment, that an abortion is necessary to prevent a substantial permanent impairment of the life of the pregnant woman.”