The Indiana Court of Appeals upheld the state's near-total abortion ban on Aug. 11, ruling that the 2022 law did not violate the "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" clause of the Indiana Constitution.

The decision is the latest blow to efforts by reproductive rights advocates seeking to expand abortion access after the Indiana General Assembly banned it except in the case of rape or incest, lethal fetal anomalies or risk to the health and life of the pregnant person. Under the first exception, abortions must be obtained within 10 weeks after fertilization while physicians can perform abortions for lethal fetal anomalies up to 20 weeks post-fertilization.

In his opinion, Judge Paul Mathias wrote that while people have a constitutionally protected right to abortion when their lif

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