North Dakota has been steeped in a legal challenge to the state's trigger ban on abortions, which is currently blocked.

Now, the Legislature has advanced a bill which includes a separate ban with narrow exceptions. The measure heading to Gov. Doug Burgum's desk would put in place a near-total ban on the procedure. There are a few exceptions, including cases of rape and incest.

Amy Jacobson, executive director of Prairie Action ND, pointed out the exceptions would only apply to those cases for up to six weeks. She noted the cutoff is before most women even know they are pregnant.

"Not being able to terminate that pregnancy revictimizes them again," Jacobson argued. "And it's shameful that the North Dakota Legislature would not do more for these victims."

Prairie Action and other opponents called on the governor to veto the bill. Another exception applies to health risks for the mother, but it is not tied to the six-week cutoff. Republican sponsors of the bill say they're trying to clear up language under state statute in relation to the trigger ban which was to take effect after federal protections were overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court.

The state Supreme Court recently ruled the trigger ban should remain blocked while a lawsuit challenging its constitutionality moves forward. Meanwhile, sponsors of the current plan said it reinforces North Dakota's standing as a "pro-life" state.

Jacobson countered the viewpoint does not align with what voters want.

"In 2014, overwhelmingly the voters rejected an attempt to ban abortion in the state of North Dakota," Jacobson emphasized. "I think that speaks volumes. So, we're hoping that the governor will hear this call."

The 2014 ballot measure would have added language to the state constitution specifying "every human being at any stage of development" has an "inalienable right to life." It was defeated by nearly 30 percentage points.

As for the bill headed to the governor, anyone caught performing an abortion would be charged with a Class C felony. The patient would not face charges.

The U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments this week on Idaho's near-total abortion ban.

Idaho v. United States is on the docket for Wednesday.

At issue is whether the ban violates the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, which prohibits hospitals from denying patients medical care because of financial or insurance issues.

The Idaho law has restricted access to reproductive care. Rory Cole is a fourth-year medical student at the University of Washington who is from Idaho and plans to practice in the state.

"A lot of these patients that we've been seeing don't really have a choice anymore, in that sense of it's not about if they want to be pregnant or not," said Cole. "It's about saving their life or their health, and we can't help them in Idaho."

Other states will be watching Idaho's Supreme Court case, and it could have an outsize impact on rural states that ban abortion, leaving patients with few options for care.

Cole said the Idaho law puts doctors in a tough place.

"The wording is so vague in the legislation here, that it makes it just extraordinarily challenging for doctors to kind of know what is legal and what is not legal here now," said Cole, "which is a place that no physician wants to exist in."

Idaho has seen an exodus of medical providers. The state has lost 22% of its practicing obstetricians since its abortion ban took effect, according to a recent report.

"Ultimately," said Cole, "that place of needing to help the people in Idaho and the people here deserving wonderful care was what brought me to basically try and stay in Idaho for residency."




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Vending machines commonly found in workplace break rooms generally contain soft drinks or snacks but one machine in Indianapolis dispenses unconventional items at the turn of a knob.

The Plan B morning-after pill, pregnancy tests and condoms are displayed in a clear glass case inside a colorful blue and orange dispenser. The items provide easy access to protection against an unwanted pregnancy and are free of charge.

Melissa Gruver, organizing director of the feminist organization Indiana Task FORCE, said it operates like a traditional vending machine.

"You just push whenever you want and it falls down, and you reach your hand through the little door and you pull it out, take it with you," Gruver explained.

A 2022 Indiana Department of Health Termination Report indicated 9,600 pregnancies were aborted, with Marion County recording the highest number of unwanted pregnancies. The report also noted the average age of a woman in Indiana who sought an abortion was 27, and 67% of all terminated pregnancies occurred within four to eight weeks of conception.

The state's contentious near-total abortion ban, which was upheld by the Indiana Supreme Court last year, has stoked fears lawmakers may begin restricting a woman's choice of birth control.

Indiana Task FORCE and reproductive health groups All-Options and the Midwest Access Coalition want the emergency contraceptive vending machine to serve as a gathering spot for community conversations on reproductive rights and sexual health.

"We've long been organizing our communities to bring about reproductive justice, which we didn't have before and we definitely don't have it now," Gruver pointed out. "But what we know to be true is that there are more of us that want access to reproductive care than those that try to stop it. We're excited to continue to work to meet this need now, and to organize for a better community."

Gruver hopes to have one dispenser in every Indiana region in the future to add to the single machine currently in an eastside Indianapolis grocery store. She added some universities in the state already have vending machines offering similar contraception products but users have to purchase the items.

This story is based on original reporting by Mary Claire Molloy for Mirror Indy.


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