Roe v Wade

Nearly one year after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the number of people traveling to states where abortion is still legal has surged, stretching local resources.

On Friday, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, a ruling that for nearly half a century had protected the constitutional right to abortion for people across the nation. Now, the decision on whether abortion will remain legal is turned over to the states. Colorado has laws on the books that protect abortion in this state, but for many surrounding states that isn’t the case.

The Mountain West is as divided on abortion as the nation, itself. States like Colorado have passed legislation to preserve access to abortion, but several others intend to outlaw the practice as soon as possible. That may be sooner than later, given a leaked Supreme Court draft opinion that calls for Roe v. Wade to be overturned.

It is still unclear whether the draft opinion, published Monday night by Politico, will be the court’s final decision. But officials in Colorado swiftly reacted to the leak and vowed to protect the state’s unrestricted access to the procedure.

"In light of the reported decision of the Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade, CO remains a state where freedom is respected and where any person has the ability to live, work, thrive, and raise a family on their own terms," said Democratic Colorado Gov. Jared Polis.

A draft opinion published by Politico suggests that earlier this year a majority of Supreme Court justices supported overturning the 1973 case Roe v. Wade that legalized abortion nationwide.

Democrats passed the measure in response to several conservative-led states adopting abortion restrictions. Polis said Colorado also needs the new law because federal protections for the procedure may end soon.

An upcoming U.S. Supreme Court case could result in some states in the Mountain West moving to severely limit or even ban abortions.

In a redo of an issue decided just four years ago, a newly constituted Supreme Court once again weighs abortion regulations.

People for and against abortion rights are watching what happens with President Trump’s nominee to fill an empty seat on the Supreme Court.Anti-abortion…