Fact: With only one exception, none of these laws mentions stage of pregnancy.

That means that these bans could apply to abortions at every stage of pregnancy.
 

Myth: If we just pass these "partial-birth" bans, we won't have to worry about access to first and second trimester abortions.

Fact: Abortion procedure bans passed in 28 states are so vaguely worded that they could ban abortions throughout pregnancy, even in the first trimester.

Proponents of these bans admit they intend to limit or eliminate access to all abortions.
 

Myth: These bans are necessary to reduce the number of third trimester abortions.

Fact: States already restrict abortions late in pregnancy, permitting them only in certain rare cases.

The real goal of these bans is to restrict access to all abortions -- even in the first trimester. When Wisconsin's abortion procedure ban went into effect, every women's clinic in the state stopped providing abortion services.
 

Myth: "Partial-Birth" is a medical term which describes a particular abortion procedure.

Fact: You will not find the term "partial-birth" in any medical dictionary because it was made up by anti-abortion advocates.

It is a political term used to convince the overwhelmingly pro-choice public to support anti-abortion legislation. As defined in state ballot measures and legislation, the term could apply to any procedure, at any stage of pregnancy.
 

Myth: Even doctors support abortion procedure bans.

Fact: The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) describes abortion procedure bans as ". . . inappropriate, ill-advised and dangerous."

The American Medical Women's Association also opposes such bans.
 

Myth: Banning so-called "partial-birth" bans doesn't violate a woman's constitutional right to choose abortion.

Fact: Abortion procedure bans are clearly unconstitutional.

The U.S. Supreme Court has consistently held that abortion is a protected right prior to viability and that women's health must be protected after viability. Abortion procedure bans would outlaw abortion at any stage of pregnancy and lack exceptions even if continued pregnancy threatens serious adverse consequences to a woman's physical health.
 

Myth: Late-term abortions have gotten out-of-control.

Fact: Only four one-hundredths of one percent of legal abortions are performed during the third trimester.

Over 95 percent of all abortions are performed during the first 15 weeks of pregnancy.
 

Myth: If late-term abortions are so rare, it doesn't really matter if we ban them.

Fact: Most late-term procedures involve wanted pregnancies that go tragically wrong when the woman's life or health is endangered or the fetus develops abnormalities incompatible with life.

These women deserve protection, even though their situations are rare.
 

Myth: The "partial-birth" abortion procedure is unnecessary.

Fact: Medical experts state that the safest method of late pregnancy termination for some women is the intact dilation and extraction (D&X) procedure.

Bills that would ban the D&X procedure would place legislators in the unprecedented position of regulating medical decisions and would require doctors to use a less safe method in some cases.
 

Myth: Late-term abortion bans are necessary to stop abortions that are happening during birth.

Fact: Third trimester abortions can already be banned except to save the life or health of the woman.

"A Candidate's Guide to A Winning Message on So-Called ‘Partial Birth' Abortion Bans," Fifty plus One, 1998

"The Limitations of U.S. Statistics on Abortion," The Alan Guttmacher Institute, January, 1997