Abortion in South Carolina is illegal after detection of a "fetal heartbeat",[1] usually around 6 weeks from the woman's last menstrual period, when many women are not yet aware that they are pregnant.[2] On May 25, 2023, Governor Henry McMaster signed a 6-week ban, and it took effect immediately.[3] The ban was blocked in court the next day[4] but was reinstated by the South Carolina Supreme Court on August 23.[5][6]
In January 2023, the South Carolina Supreme Court had struck down a similar existing law as violating the state's privacy clause under Article 1, Section 10 of the South Carolina Constitution.[7][8] Passed in 2021, that law had criminalized abortion once embryonic cardiac activity is detectable, which is around five or six weeks after the first day of the woman's last menstrual period.[9] In 2024, South Carolina lawmakers reinstated a bill that would define abortion as "prenatal homicide"; and make abortion patients eligible for the death penalty.[10]
The number of abortion clinics in South Carolina has fluctuated over the years, with fifteen in 1982, eighteen in 1992 and three in 2014. There were 5,714 legal abortions in 2014, and 5,778 in 2015.
In 2022, when a political campaign polled South Carolina adults, it found that 53% support "a woman’s right to choose to have a safe and legal abortion" while 37% do not.[11]
- ^ South Carolina Legislature. "S*0474, Act #70 of 2023. Abortion - Fetal Heartbeat". www.scstatehouse.gov. Archived from the original on July 18, 2024. Retrieved August 27, 2024.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
sixwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Pollard, James (May 25, 2023). "South Carolina Governor Signs New Abortion Ban Into Law". HuffPost. Retrieved May 25, 2023.
- ^ El-Bawab, Nadine (May 26, 2023). "Judge grants injunction, allows abortions to resume in South Carolina". ABC News. Retrieved May 26, 2023.
- ^ Kittredge, John. "28174 - Planned Parenthood South Atlantic, et al v. State of South Carolina, et al" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on July 23, 2024.
- ^ Pollard, James (August 23, 2023). "South Carolina's new all-male highest court reverses course on abortion, upholding strict 6-week ban". The Boston Globe. The Associated Press. Retrieved August 23, 2023.
- ^ Pollard, James (January 5, 2023). "South Carolina Supreme Court strikes down state abortion ban". Associated Press.
- ^ Planned Parenthood South Atlantic, et al. v. State of South Carolina, et al.
- ^ Rabin, Roni Caryn (February 14, 2022). "Abortion Opponents Hear a 'Heartbeat.' Most Experts Hear Something Else". The New York Times. Retrieved July 8, 2022.
- ^ "2025-2026 Bill 3537: South Carolina Prenatal Equal Protection Act - South Carolina Legislature Online". www.scstatehouse.gov. Retrieved December 11, 2024.
- ^ Schneier, Elena (May 25, 2022). "South Carolina Democrat seeks to make abortion key issue in governor's race". Politico. Retrieved June 24, 2022.