Since July 2015, state law requires a 24-hour waiting period with counseling before a woman can undergo an
abortion procedure, according to Find Law.
Abortion procedures in Georgia are only covered by insurance obtained under Affordable Care Act if a woman's life or health are endangered. That same rule is in effect for state employees under their insurance plans. In the case of incest, rape, or when a woman's life is endangered, public funds are available,
according to the Guttmacher Institute.
For those minors seeking an abortion, state law requires parents to be notified, but they do not have to give their consent for the procedure to occur, the website said.
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In the nearby state of Florida, women must also wait 24 hours and receive counseling in person before undergoing an abortion. Florida law also prescribes the same standards as Georgia for insurance coverage on abortion. The state also requires that women have an ultrasound procedure before an abortion with the option to view the image of that ultrasound, Guttmacher noted.
In neighboring Alabama, a 48-hour waiting period is required for an abortion along with counseling. Similar insurance protocol to Georgia is in place. Parental consent for an abortion is also required by minors. Like Florida, a pre-abortion ultrasound is required in Alabama, Guttmacher noted.
The right to abortion is protected by the U.S. Supreme Court's 1973 decision in Roe v Wade,
according to Find Law, although that law has endured many challenges in the four decades since it became law.
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The case involved plaintiff Norma McCorvey who had been denied an abortion under Texas law. McCorvey had been unmarried and pregnant when seeking the procedure. She challenged the law under a fake name, "Jane Roe," arguing in her petition that Texas, in criminalizing abortion, had violated her constitutional right of privacy. The high court agreed, voting 7-2 in a landmark decision.
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