After the US Supreme Court's ruling that ended the right to terminate a pregnancy last June, the state of Idaho has become the first to move forward with a bill that restricts interstate travel for abortion.
The Idaho Legislature's Bill 242 creates a new crime - "abortion trafficking." Abortion trafficking is defined as the transportation of a minor to another state for an abortion without the consent of their parents or guardians. The newly-coined abortion trafficking is a felony offence that is punishable by a two-to-five-year prison sentence.
Idaho is one of the 12 US states with a near-total ban on abortion. Exceptions include cases of rape or incest or when a person's life is endangered due to their pregnancy.
The law requires sexual assault survivors seeking an abortion to provide proof of rape to their physicians. The extremely traumatising process often prevents survivors from going forward with the procedure altogether.
It should be noted that Idaho borders several states where abortion is legal, including Oregon, Washington, Montana and California, where minors could earlier travel to.
Bill 242 was passed in the state House of Representatives earlier this month. It is expected to pass in the majorly Republican Senate later this week. Pending any amendments, the bill would then reach the desk of Gov. Brad Little, who is known to support anti-abortion measures in the state.
One of the Republican sponsors, Rep. Kevin Andrus, told The Associated Press that the bill is driven by parental rights.
"We want to make sure that parents have a say in the life choices of their children," he said. "It will do a lot to save lives."
The bill will force minors, especially those living in poor socio-economic households, to continue with their pregnancies.
On June 24, 2022, the US Supreme Court ended the constitutional right to terminate a pregnancy in a seismic ruling. The ruling put an end to abortion rights that had been granted to women in the US nearly 50 years ago. The landmark 1973 ruling, called Roe vs Wade, had legalised abortion across the country.
US President Joe Biden called the Supreme Court abortion ruling a 'sad day for the court and the country' which 'took away' Americans' constitutional right.
