The Mexican Supreme Court has ruled 8-3 that a Mexico City law that allows abortion in the first trimester is constitutional. Outside of Mexico City, abortions are allowed only “in cases of rape, when the mother’s life is in danger, or if the fetus has severe deformities,” according to the Associated Press.
The Court’s decision sets a precedent for other parts of Mexico to pass laws analogous to the Mexico City statute. Under the Mexico City law, all public hospitals are required to give patients free abortions, but individual doctors can refuse to carry out the procedure. Since May 2007, when the law was first enacted, most free abortions have involved poor women, nearly forty percent of whom cited an inability to afford another child as their reason for seeking out this medical procedure, according to the Kansas City Star.
