US Supreme Court ends constitutional right to abortion, overturns Roe vs Wade

Women in the US will lose the constitutional right to abortion after the Supreme Court overturned a 50-year-old ruling that legalised it nationwide.

America’s highest court struck down the landmark Roe v Wade decision, which had legalised abortion across the country.

The court followed through on the decision, which was outlined in a leaked document some weeks ago.

The judgment allows individual states to ban abortion. Half of US states are expected to introduce new restrictions or bans after the ruling.

Thirteen states have already passed so-called trigger laws that will automatically outlaw abortion following the Supreme Court's ruling. A number of others are likely to pass new restrictions quickly.

Abortion access is expected to be cut off for about 36 million women of reproductive age, according to research from Planned Parenthood, a healthcare organisation that provides abortions.

The Supreme Court’s ruling was related to the case, Dobbs v Jackson Women's Health Organization, that challenged Mississippi's ban on abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy.

But the court ruled in favour of the state by a majority vote of six to three, effectively ending the constitutional right to an abortion.