Utah has many 21 state restrictions on abortion, ranking at No. 2 nationwide behind Oklahoma,
The Washington Post reported.
In contrast, neighboring state Nevada comes in at No. 33 while Arizona to the south comes in at No. 6 in the same study, released by the Guttmacher Institute.
Utah has a 72-hour waiting period after a woman receives state-required counseling before undergoing an
abortion, the Guttmacher Institute noted.
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Typically, most states that require a waiting period have a shorter time. In Arizona, that waiting period is 24 hours, while in Nevada has no waiting period.
Utah also requires parental consent for a minor to have the procedure (a judge can intervene on this) and parents must be told about the procedure 24 hours before it takes place. Arizona also requires consent of one parent while Nevada has no parental involvement statute,
according to Planned Parenthood.
In Utah, public funds may only be used on abortions when a woman's life is endangered or in cases of incest or rape. "Abortion is covered in private insurance policies only in cases of life endangerment, rape, incest, when her health is severely compromised or in cases of fetal impairment,"
the Guttmacher Institute said.
The
anti-abortion group Americans United for Life ranks Utah at No. 29 nationally on its 2014 state report card on abortion. It notes on its website that Utah also "requires that a woman seeking abortion at five-months or 20-weeks gestation or later be offered anesthesia for the unborn child (because of the pain experience by a child by this stage of development)."
AUL ranked Nevada No. 41 and Arizona No. 4.
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