This bill would make a number of improvements to the rights of pregnant people in South Carolina to secure a safe and legal abortion.
Among other provisions, Senate Bill 27 would authorize abortions to be performed on adult women prior to the viability of a fetus, and it would establish the decision as solely between an adult and their physician. The bill would forbid keeping a woman alive by artificial methods in order to carry a pregnancy to term without her consent. The bill would also set rules for performing abortions on minors with the consent of parents or other guardians, and it would grant minors the right to petition the court for an abortion without adult consent.
The bill would also promote equitable access to contraceptives as well as assistive reproductive technologies like in vitro fertilization. The bill would also establish that “all pregnant women in South Carolina are entitled to high-quality healthcare during pregnancy, childbirth, and for at least one year after childbirth, regardless of their insurance plan coverage, lack of insurance, or ability to pay.”
We support this bill because: After years of dangerous attacks on access to reproductive healthcare, this bill represents a step toward more expansive rights and improved health outcomes for people who become pregnant in South Carolina.
