White House slams Indiana's restrictive abortion law

Washington, Aug 7 (IANS) Indiana's latest legislation on abortion "institutes a near-total abortion ban" in the US state, said the White House, calling it a "devastating step".

Indiana became the first state to pass a restrictive law against abortion since the Supreme Court overturned the landmark Roe v. Wade legislation in June and eliminated women's constitutional right to abortion, reports Xinhua news agency.

Under the law passed on Friday and due to take effect on September 15, abortions in Indiana will be allowed only before 10 weeks post-fertilisation in cases of rape or incest, to save the mother's life, and if a foetus has a lethal anomaly.

Without Roe v. Wade, states are allowed to impose their own legislation on the medical procedure.

"Congress should also act immediately to pass a law restoring the protections of Roe," White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement on Saturday.

Since the Supreme Court abortion ruling, at least nine states have instituted a near-total ban on the procedure, with the only exception being danger to the life of the mother.

Other states are now scrambling to protect abortion access amid legal challenges, while abortion clinics are struggling to navigate patchworks of new laws.