Vague Ballot Measures Promise Abortion Until Birth

What’s happening: Ballot measures granting the right to abortion have been proposed across the country following widespread success in the 2022 and 2023 elections. Three are already included on 2024 ballots in Florida, Maryland, and New York.

Why it matters: Democrats and activists are exploiting the unpopularity of abortion bans in some states. Many ballot initiatives, including some already ratified, contain vague language such as a subtle “health” exception that effectively legalizes abortion until birth.

The loophole: Florida will vote in November on a measure that allows restrictions on abortion after “viability” — around 24 weeks — unless the abortion is “necessary to protect the patient’s health, as determined by the patient’s healthcare provider.”

• Mental health: Since “health” is not defined specifically as physical health, doctors could justify ending any pregnancy that causes distress on the basis of protecting a mother’s mental health — a common talking point in the medical field.

• Pushback: Florida’s attorney general tried to block her state’s ballot proposal due to its vague definition of “viability,” but the Florida Supreme Court allowed it to proceed.

• The same standard: A similar, ambiguous health exception appears in proposals for Arizona, Arkansas, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, and South Dakota that are not yet on those ballots.

Law of the land: Measures with the health exception have become law in some states, including Ohio. Media coverage claiming to debunk “misinformation” about Ohio’s abortion policy ignored this feature.

• The polling: A majority of Americans say abortion should be restricted after three months of pregnancy, with exceptions for rape, incest, or a threat to the mother’s life.