Editor’s Note: This story has been updated to correctly identify the number of Americans who live in states where abortion is protected.

DENVER (KDVR) — A leaked U.S. Supreme Court draft suggests justices could overturn the 1973 Roe v. Wade case that legalized abortion. If overturned, U.S. states would decide their own abortion laws.

Abortion would stay legal in some states. Twenty-two states and the District of Columbia protect abortion access through state constitutions, legislation or court decisions, according to a database from the Center for Reproductive Rights.

Abortion would remain legal in these states barring new action to overturn previous actions.

States where abortion is protected and in states where it is not protected have wide ranges of restrictions and expanded access. New York law protects abortion at any stage of pregnancy for any reason, while Mississippi bans abortions after six weeks of pregnancy.

States that protect abortion access include Alaska, California, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington.

The Southwest, South and Great Plains states have fewer protections.


While there are more states that do not protect abortion access than those that do, some of the country’s most populous states have protections, including New York, Florida and California.

A slight majority of Americans live in places where abortions are not protected.

In total, 171,367,377 Americans live in states where abortion is not protected, while 160,332,737 live in states where it is.