OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — On Friday, President Biden took action to safeguard access to reproductive health services. Pro-abortion rights advocates say it’s an important step in protecting abortion access.
“Access to essential medical care is in such a state of crisis right now, that e need to use every tool in our toolbox to address this crisis in the federal and state level,” Scout Richters, legal and policy counsel at ACLU Nebraska.
But, anti-abortion rights advocates say they don't want the administration to pick and choose when it will support the Supreme Court’s decisions.
“I believe this is just executive overreach the supreme court has made clear there is not a constitutional right to abortion,” Sandy Danek, executive director at Nebraska Right to Life.
Governor Pete Ricketts, criticized Biden’s order, saying it doesn’t change anything.
Ricketts wrote, “The supreme court was clear … abortion issues belong to the people through their state’s elected representatives."
Advocates against abortion rights agree it doesn’t have much of an impact and so do pro-abortion rights advocates, but for different reasons.
“It allows us to take that authority (and) bring it back to the states and the democracy works then the people will have a voice,” said Danek.
“The reason it perhaps doesn’t do more for Nebraska is because abortion does remain legal here,” said Richters.
All sides of the issue agree that November's election is crucial.
The unicameral voted on a trigger ban earlier this year, but it didn't pass. Ricketts has said he plans to call a special session this summer.
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