The Montana Supreme Court upheld a temporary block Wednesday on laws that would restrict access to abortion while a lawsuit continues to play out in district court.
Montana abortion providers and the ACLU of Montana sued the state over the laws passed in 2023, saying they’re unconstitutional. The legislation would ban dilation and evacuation abortions, effectively ban medication abortions prescribed through telehealth and restrict Medicaid coverage of abortion.
A district court initially blocked the laws back in May of 2023, saying they likely violate the state right to privacy. Longstanding legal precedent in Montana has found that right prevents undue government interference in abortion access.
Gov. Greg Gianforte called one of the blocks on the Medicaid coverage restrictions “extreme.” He pointed to Justice Jim Rice’s lone dissenting opinion. The justice wrote that the restrictions on coverage for abortion concern government funding, not access to health care.
The majority ruling found that Medicaid coverage directly impacts access to health care for low-income patients.
A final decision from the district court on the laws’ constitutionality is still pending.
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In Montana, abortion access has been at times illegal, legal, and stuck in limbo. Providers have weathered bombings and arson, advocates and opponents have battled it out in court, and citizens have passed a constitutional amendment affirming a woman's right to choose. One listener wants to know more about the history of reproductive rights in Montana. MTPR's Aaron Bolton reports on the underground networks, political violence and landmark court cases that got us to where we are today. -
A conservative group is suing the state over a 2024 ballot initiative enshrining abortion access in the Montana Constitution. And Montanans will soon be able to apply for a property tax rebate approved by state lawmakers earlier this year. -
Montana’s newest constitutional right took effect this month — the right to terminate a pregnancy. A challenge to its legality is trying to find footing. -
The Montana Supreme Court Monday threw out three abortion-related laws passed in 2021. The justices ruled the laws violated the right to privacy outlined in the state Constitution.
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A Helena judge struck down several laws restricting abortion access and ruled they’re unconstitutional. The laws and one state health department rule were adopted by Republican policymakers in 2023.
