Pennsylvania Supreme Court Recognizes ‘Fundamental Right’ to Abortion Protected by State Constitution

The case focuses a on a much narrower question: whether publicly funded Medicaid can be used to pay for abortion.

Pro-abortion protestors rally in Philadelphia, Pa., on July 4, 2022. Hannah Beier/Getty Images

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court on Monday issued a long-awaited opinion on a case centered around using state-funded Medicaid to pay for abortion, recognizing that “reproductive autonomy” is a fundamental right guaranteed by the state’s constitution.

The ruling declared that the Abortion Control Act of 1982, a Pennsylvania law prohibiting Medicaid from being used to cover the costs of abortion, violates the state constitution’s Equal Rights Amendment (ERA)—for which there is no equivalent in the U.S. Constitution.