Restrictions

In June 2022, Utah began enforcing its trigger ban,^[1]Utah Code Ann. § 76-7a-201; @UtahSenate, Twitter (Jun. 24, 2022, 8:17 PM) https://twitter.com/utahsenate/ status/1540489331583766528?cxt=HHwWgMCi1dO49eAqAAAA; Becky Jacobs, Utah’s abortion trigger … Continue reading which bans all abortions except in the case of rape, incest, or the threat to the life of the pregnant person, following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in the case Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.^[2]Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Org., 597 U.S (June 24, 2022), rev’d Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Org., 945 F.3d 265, 274 (5th Cir. 2019). In July 2022, a preliminary injunction was granted,^[3]Planned Parenthood Ass’n of Utah v. Utah, No. 220903886 (Third Jud. Dist. Utah Jul. 11, 2022) (granting preliminary injunction following temporary restraining order). which was affirmed by the Utah Supreme Court on August 1, 2024.^[4]Planned Parenthood Ass’n of Utah v. Utah, No. 20220696-SC, 2024 (Utah Aug. 1, 2024) (affirming preliminary injunction). In March 2023, Utah limited the rape and incest exceptions to the trigger ban to 17.6 weeks LMP.^[5]H.B. 297, 2023 Leg., Gen. Sess. (UT 2023), to be codified at Utah Code Ann. §§ 76-7-302, 76-7-302.5, 76-7a-201.

Utah law generally prohibits abortion at eighteen weeks LMP and after viability.^[6]UTAH CODE ANN. § 76-7-302.5; id. § 76-7-302. This ban is was enjoined,^[7]Planned Parenthood Ass’n of Utah v. Miner, No. 2:19-cv-00238 (C.D. Utah, Jun. 18, 2019). but the injunction was lifted on June 26, 2022 and Utah’s eighteen week ban is now in effect.^[8]Planned Parenthood Ass’n of Utah v. Checketts, No. 2:19-cv-00238 (C.D. Utah, Jun. 26, 2022). There is a permanently enjoined total ban that has not been repealed.^[9]UTAH CODE ANN. § 76-7-302(3). Leavitt v. Jane L., 520 U.S. 1274, 117 S. Ct. 2453, 138 L. Ed. 2d 211 (1997). Utah law prohibits D&X and saline procedures,^[10]UTAH CODE ANN. §§ 76-7-326, 76-7-310.5. and abortions sought solely because of Down syndrome.^[11]Id. § 76-7-302.4. Pregnant people who seek abortion care must undergo a mandatory seventy-two-hour waiting period and biased counseling.^[12]Id. § 76-7-305; id. § 76-7-305.5. Utah also limits public funding for,^[13]Id. § 76-7-331. and private insurance coverage of, abortion.^[14]UTAH CODE ANN. § 31A-22-726. Utah law generally requires that a parent or legal guardian be notified prior to a minor’s abortion^[15]Id. § 76-7-304 (2). and consent to it.^[16]Id. § 76-7-304.5 (1)(a). Alternatively, a judge can approve a minor’s petition.^[17]Id. § 76-7-304.5(3).

Utah’s targeted regulation of abortion providers (TRAP) laws include requirements related to facilities^[18]Id. § 26-21-2 (1), id. § 26-21-2(23)-(24); UTAH ADMIN. CODE r. R432-600-5. and reporting.^[19]UTAH CODE ANN. § 76-7-313. Utah law restricts the provision of abortion care to licensed physicians and explicitly prohibits certified nurse midwives from providing abortion care.^[20]Id. §§ 76-7-302 (2), 58-77-603. In 2023, Utah enacted a law to prohibit abortion clinics from operating in the state and requiring abortion care to be provided in hospitals except in emergencies, though this law is subject to a preliminary injunction and not in effect.^[21]H.B. 467, 2023 Leg., Gen. Sess. (UT 2023), to be codified at Utah Code Ann. §§ 26-21-6.5, 76-7-301 et seq. Planned Parenthood v. Utah, Case No. 220903886 (D. Utah, May 2, 2023) (order granting a … Continue reading Providers who violate Utah’s abortion restrictions may face civil and criminal penalties.^[22]See, e.g., id. §§ 76-7-327, 76-7-326.

State Protections

Utah law does not include express constitutional or statutory protections for abortion. To the contrary, Utah’s policy preference to ban abortion to the fullest extent of the law: “It is the intent of the Legislature to protect and guarantee to unborn children their inherent and inalienable right to life…”^[23]Id. § 76-7-301.1. During counseling, a patient must be told that the state’s preference is for childbirth over abortion.”^[24]Id. § 76-7-305.5(2)(d).

Post-Roe Prohibitions

In 2020, Utah enacted a trigger ban,^[25]Id. § 76-7a-201. which is currently enjoined.^[26]Planned Parenthood Ass’n of Utah v. Utah, No. 20220696-SC, 2024 (Utah Aug. 1, 2024) (affirming preliminary injunction). Utah repealed its pre-Roe ban in 1973.^[27]UTAH CODE ANN. §§ 76-2-1, 76-2-2 (1953), repealed by 1973 Utah Laws 584, 684, ch. 196 (sub.) ch. 10, pt. 14.

Conclusion

Now that the Supreme Court has overturned Roe, Utah is enforcing an 18-week ban.