Life/Health of the Mother Exception

Abortion is regulated at the state level. When this poll was conducted in June 2025, all states that restrict abortion had an exception for when the life of the mother is at risk, each with its own specifics and wording. In several states, doctors have denied or delayed care—resulting in patients’ deaths or permanent damage—due to uncertainty about whether a condition was sufficiently severe to trigger the exception. Most states that restrict abortion also had a broader health-of-the-mother exception, but six did not.