Many states regulate the advertisement for abortion services by prohibiting individuals from advertising abortion-inducing medication and posting notice of abortion services. Although the U.S. Supreme Court held that this type of restriction infringed on First Amendment rights in Bigelow v. Virginia (1975), some states still have abortion advertising restrictions in their laws.

This dataset explores abortion regulations in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia in effect between December 1, 2018 and March 1, 2021, as well as case law and attorney general opinions that affect the enforceability of these laws.

This dataset is a part of a suite of 16 datasets created by the Policy Surveillance Program of the Center for Public Health Law Research in collaboration with subject matter experts from Resources for Abortion Delivery (RAD), Guttmacher Institute, American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Center for Reproductive Rights (CRR), National Abortion Federation (NAF), and Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA), who conceptualized and developed the Abortion Law Project. If you need broader contextual information on state laws and policies, national level information, or data and evidence related to abortion and other reproductive health issues, please contact the Guttmacher Institute at info@guttmacher.org. 

Disclaimer: The information contained herein does not constitute legal advice. If you have questions regarding your legal rights or obligations, contact an attorney. If you are an abortion provider seeking legal compliance guidance, the following collaborating organizations may be able to assist you: ACLU, CRR, PPFA (for affiliated health centers), NAF, and Regulatory Assistance for Abortion Providers (a project of RAD).

If you have any questions about the information provided here, please contact LawAtlas@temple.edu or RAAP@radprogram.org. 

The State Abortion Laws Database will be updated biannually, with the next publication scheduled for release in August 2021.g