Abortion rights groups and providers in Oklahoma called on the state’s top court to stop implementation of a six-week ban that, like a similar Texas law, will be enforced through private civil lawsuits.
The law, known as S.B. 1503, prohibits doctors from performing abortions after detecting an embryonic heart beat, a petition filed Thursday in the Oklahoma Supreme Court says. There are no exceptions for rape, interest, or fetal health conditions, it says.
As happened in Texas, the plaintiffs expect the law to shut down abortions almost completely, as most abortions in Oklahoma take place after the six-week mark, the …