In a rare split decision, the Iowa Supreme Court on Friday balked at reinstating Iowa’s “fetal heartbeat bill,” a move that keeps abortion through 20 weeks of pregnancy unfettered in the Hawkeye State, for now.
The advisory ruling, rendered despite the fact that the U.S. Supreme Court overturned federal constitutional abortion protections a year ago, was blasted by Republicans and pro-life groups and hailed by Democrats and their abortion industry allies.
Iowa’s high court’s evenly divided ruling by default affirms a lower court’s 2019 order that maintained access to abortion through 20 weeks of a pregnancy. That ruling overturned the heartbeat bill that outlawed abortion at the point an unborn child’s heartbeat is detected — typically around six weeks.