Limits imposed on access to abortion in Arizona and Illinois

On Monday Arizona's new Republican Governor Jan Brewer signed into law a group of anti-choice bills. This includes a 24-hour waiting period, meaning women must consult with their doctor, who has to tell them about "risks and alternatives, and the fetus' probable characteristics," and then wait until the next day to have the procedure. Health care workers, including pharmacists, will be able to refuse to dispense emergency contraception. A ban on late-term abortions was revised. And a parental consent law that forces minors to get approval before having an abortion has been made even stricter.

On Tuesday a federal appeals court revived a parental consent notification law in Illinois. A ban on enforcement was issued in 2007 - this new decision overturns that ruling.

The bottom line is that legal abortion is useless if it is inaccessible. The new laws in Arizona and the return of parental consent in Illinois are part of a larger attempt by abortion opponents to make abortions harder and harder to come by until the procedure is completely out of reach for everyone. Policy that limits access most directly impacts those who are already the most vulnerable. The more laws like these are enacted, the larger that group becomes. Roe v. Wade is simply not enough - safe and legal abortion needs to be a real option for all women regardless of age, class, race, geography, or any other mitigating factors.