Restrictions

Nevada law generally prohibits abortion at twenty-four weeks post-fertilization.^[1]NEV. REV. STAT. § 442.250(1)(b) (“No abortion may be performed . . . unless [it] is performed . . .within 24 weeks after the commencement of the pregnancy”). Nevada limits public funding for abortion,^[2]DIV. OF HEALTH CARE FIN. AND POLICY, Medicaid Services Manual, § 603.3 (2019) and includes a permanently enjoined requirement that a parent or legal guardian be notified about a minor’s abortion.^[3]NEV. REV. STAT. § 442.255; see also Glick v. McKay, 937 F.2d 434, 442 (9th Cir. 1991). Nevada criminalizes self-managed abortion after twenty-four weeks of pregnancy.^[4]Nev. Rev. Stat. § 200.220. The state Court of Appeals declined to overturn the law, Frazier v. State, 456 P.3d 1084 (Nev. Ct. App. 2020). The Ninth Circuit, however, invalidated a similar law in … Continue reading

Nevada law includes reporting requirements.^[5]NEV. REV. STAT. § 442.260(2); NEV. ADMIN. CODE § 442.200; NEV. REV. STAT. § 442.265. The state restricts the provision of abortion care to licensed physicians.^[6]NEV. REV. STAT. § 442.250(1). Providers who violate Nevada’s abortion restrictions may face civil and criminal penalties.^[7]See, e.g., id. § 442.270; id. § 442.257.

State Protections

Nevada law includes express statutory protections for abortion,^[8]NEV. REV. STAT. § 442.250. directly ratified by Nevada voters in a 1990 referendum.^[9]NEVADA LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL BUREAU, 1990 NEVADA BALLOT QUESTION 7. For this reason, the law can be amended or repealed only by another referendum.^[10]NEV. CONST. art. XIX, § 1(3) (“If a majority of the voters voting upon the proposal submitted at such election votes approval of such statute or resolution or any part thereof, such statute or … Continue reading In 2024, Nevada voters have approved an amendment to the state constitution to create the fundamental right to abortion until viability; however, this amendment requires a second vote before it is effective.^[11]Reproductive Rights Amendment, NV Sec’y of State, https://www.nvsos.gov/sos/home/showpublisheddocument/12633/638375592027970000. Silver State General Election Results, Nevada Secretary of State … Continue reading The state protects clinic access by prohibiting interference with entering or exiting a facility.^[12]NEV. REV. STAT. § 449.531.

On June 28, 2022, the Nevada governor issued an executive order 1) prohibiting, except by court order, executive branch cooperation with out-of-state investigations and legal actions, including extradition, arising from the lawful provision of abortion in Nevada and 2) directing state licensing boards to implement policies that ensure no person will subject to discipline or disqualified from licensure for providing or assisting with the provision of abortion care that is legal in Nevada.^[13]Nev. Exec. Order No. 2022-08 (Jun. 28, 2022), https://gov.nv.gov/News/Executive_Orders/2022/Executive_ Order_2022-08_Protecting_Access_toReproductive_Health_Services_in_Nevada/. In 2023, the state enacted an interstate shield law that codified the protections of the 2022 executive order as applied to all state actors.^[14]S.B. 131, 82^nd Leg., Reg. Sess. (Nev., 2023), amending Nev. Rev. Stat. §§ 179, 232, 629. The state also enacted a data privacy law that regulates the collection, usage, and sharing of consumer health data, including abortion and gender-affirming care data and prohibits the use of a geofence within 1,750 feet of a medical facility that provides health care services.^[15]NV SB 370, 82^nd Leg., Reg. Sess. (Nev., 2023),

Post-Roe Prohibitions

Nevada amended one pre-Roe ban in 1973 and repealed additional, unenforced pre-Roe bans in 2019.^[16]NEV. REV. STAT. § 200.220, amended by 1973 Nev. Laws ch 766, § 7; NEV. REV. STAT. §§201.120, 2120 to 201.140, repealed by 2019 Nev. Laws ch 265, § 6.

Conclusion

Now that the Supreme Court has overturned Roe, Abortion will remain legal in Nevada. In 1990, Nevada voters passed a referendum safeguarding the state’s law legalizing abortion, and, in 2024 voters approved an amendment to the Nevada Constitution to protect abortion rights, which requires a second vote in 2026 to be effective.