Employee Benefit Plan Review | Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health: Proactive Considerations for Employers

On June 24, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the State of Mississippi’s restrictions on abortion in its Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision, overturning the seminal Supreme Court decisions of Roe v. Wade from 1973 and Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey from 1992. As a result, individual states are once again free to regulate – even to eliminate – abortion care.

Before the Court was the Mississippi Gestational Act, which provides that abortion is prohibited: “except in a medical emergency or in the case of a severe fetal abnormality . . . if the probable gestational age of the unborn human being has been determined to be greater than fifteen (15) weeks.” In analyzing the Mississippi law, the Dobbs majority found that no constitutional right exists to an abortion. The Justices in the majority overruled the Supreme Court’s own prior precedent by holding that “the Constitution makes no reference to abortion, and no such right is implicitly protected by any constitutional provision, including the one on which the defenders of Roe and Casey now chiefly rely – the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.”

While Dobbs is not a decision directly related to employment, employers should remain cognizant of the practical and legal considerations related to the outcome of the case. These considerations should include how employers will maintain a respectful workplace, as well as what steps employers should take to limit exposure to claims of religious discrimination and/or harassment.

Click here to read the full article written by Charles Bush, Shalina Schaeffer and Cameron Ritsema published in Employee Benefit Plan Review.