AZ Supreme Court weighing 1864 abortion ban. On Tuesday, the Arizona Supreme Court heard arguments in Planned Parenthood v. Mayes, relating to the possible reinstatement of Arizona’s 1864 near-total ban on abortion. Abortion is currently legal in Arizona up to 15 weeks under a 2022 law passed by the Arizona Legislature, and an Arizona Court of Appeals correctly ruled that abortion was to remain legal in Arizona last year. Advocates say they feel optimistic that the Supreme Court will make the right decision to reject this last-ditch attempt to bring back the Civil War-era ban. Still, the case could have devastating impacts on Arizonans’ right to reproductive health care, underscoring the need for permanent and lasting protections for access to abortion care.

U.S. Supreme Court will hear abortion pill challenge. The court announced Wednesday that they will take up the accessibility of the medication abortion drug Mifepristone, the first pill in the two-step process. The Court will consider possible restrictions such as telehealth access, the ability to receive the prescription in the mail, and restricting legality from 10 to 7 weeks, despite what the FDA recommends. Medication abortion has become the most preferred method of birth control in the U.S., and the Court’s decision could affect access for over 64.5 million people, with BIPOC communities, students, LGBTQ+ people, undocumented people, and those who live in rural areas, affected most.

Reps. Ciscomani and Schweikert vote to expel President Biden. Instead of delivering real solutions for Arizonans, Ciscomani and Schweikert continue to pursue an extremist MAGA agenda that is out of line with Arizona voters. The effort by MAGA extremists to remove Biden is pure politics and without basis. It’s yet another cynical attempt to divide Americans and distract us from their failures to deliver real solutions for their districts. Ciscomani and Schweikert have repeatedly voted to cut Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and other vital programs that millions of Americans rely on, all while pushing handouts for corporate donors. They also backed anti-abortion extremist Mike Johnson for House Speaker even though Arizonans overwhelmingly support abortion access. Ciscomani and Schweikert do not represent the values of their constituents – but hey, new year, new representatives?! 👀👀👀

Podcast: Fighting Texas’s abortion ban. The Texas Supreme Court forced Kate Cox to flee the stateto access abortion care after she was denied an exception to Texas’s abortion ban, despite Doctors diagnosing her pregnancy with a fatal fetal anomaly that could also threaten her health. Listen to her harrowing story here. 

Sign the Arizona for Abortion Access ballot initiative! We need long and lasting protections for abortion access in Arizona. Find a hub or event to sign at here.

Donate to the Abortion Fund of Arizona. Help provide access to safe, legal abortion care in Arizona with a donation to the Abortion Fund of Arizona, and learn more about their work!

Happy holidays from the team at Progress Arizona! This is the last edition of Last Week This Morning of 2023. The Progress Arizona staff will be out of the office from December 18th, 2023, to January 3rd, 2024. See you next year!