What Roe v. Wade being overturned means for Oklahoma, where abortion was already banned

Abortion services effectively ceased in Oklahoma about a month ago, when the nation's strictest ban went into effect.

Now, a Supreme Court decision has overturned Roe v. Wade, ending the constitutional right to abortion. Here's what's next for Oklahoma and where the laws stand now.

What did the Supreme Court decide? 

On Friday, the Supreme Court reversed two landmark decisions that secured the right to abortion, Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey.

In the 6-3 decision, authored by Samuel Alito, the majority wrote that there is no constitutional right to abortion, and the authority to regulate abortion “is returned to the people and their elected representatives.”

The three liberal justices on the court dissented.

Is abortion now illegal in Oklahoma? 

Under the state's "trigger law," performing an abortion is now illegal except in instances in which an abortion is necessary to save the life of the mother. 

The trigger law banning abortion took effect Friday after state Attorney General John O’Connor certified that the Supreme Court’s decision overturned Roe and Casey.

More:End of Roe makes abortion a crime in Oklahoma as state's abortion 'trigger' law takes effect

Oklahoma also has several other anti-abortion measures on the books. What's unclear now is which will be enforced, since some are contradictory in what exceptions they provide.

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Two laws, House Bill 4327 and Senate Bill 1503, both use a civil enforcement mechanism to ban abortion, allowing anyone to sue someone who provides abortions or "aids or abets" someone in accessing an abortion. 

The pregnant person couldn't be sued under those two laws.

House Bill 4327 effectively ended abortions in Oklahoma because it bans the procedure after the point of fertilization. It included exceptions in the event of a medical emergency, as well as in the case of rape or incest, so long as the crimes were reported to police.

Senate Bill 1503 was similar but allowed for abortions up to roughly the six-week mark of pregnancy. It has an exception for later abortions in the event of a medical emergency.

Oklahoma abortion ban:What we know about Oklahoma's new abortion law — the strictest in the nation

Another anti-abortion law set to take effect in August classifies performing an abortion as a felony, punishable by up to 10 years in prison or up to $100,000 in fines. Those penalties go even further than the state's trigger law, which says people who violate it could face two to five years in prison.

What changes now that Roe v. Wade was overturned?

In Oklahoma, providers had already stopped providing abortions in the wake of HB 4327, which took effect in May. 

Oklahomans in need of abortions have been forced to travel out of state to get them.

Now, they may have to travel even further for the procedure, since many of Oklahoma's neighboring states have trigger laws banning abortion.

Reproductive rights organizations in Oklahoma and nationally have said they will continue to challenge anti-abortion measures in court. But they've acknowledged the steep odds against them.