Morgentaler, in turn, appealed to the Supreme Court of Canada. In a landmark decision in 1988, the Supreme Court declared the country`s entire abortion law unconstitutional: R. v. Morgentaler. [10] In a 5:2 decision, the Court found that section 251 of the Criminal Code has no force or effect because it violates section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Section 7 states: „Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of the person and the right not to be deprived of it, except in accordance with the principles of fundamental justice.” The Court also held that the offence could not be justified under Article 1 of the Charter, which in certain cases allows a government to provide sufficient justification for an offence. In a 5-2 decision, the court upheld the acquittal of abortion lawyer Henry Morgentaler and struck down the existing law. But funding is only half the battle. We also call on the federal and provincial governments to treat abortion as the medically necessary procedure by firmly placing abortion in the CHA. All provinces and territories have classified abortion as a medically necessary procedure – meaning it currently falls under the broad GBA definition of „insured health services.” Although there is no federal law, each province`s medical school sets its own guidelines for abortion, including pregnancy age limits for the use of the abortion pill. In 1995, provincial and federal decisions forced Nova Scotia and New Brunswick to allow private abortion clinics.

Despite this, access to abortion outside hospitals continued to be uneven across the country. Some provinces and territories have decided to cover the cost of abortions in clinics outside of hospitals. Others did not, meaning that women who could not go to the hospital for an abortion had to pay the cost of a clinical abortion out of their own pockets. The Vancouver Women`s Caucus organized a caravan from Vancouver to Ottawa as a national feminist protest to liberalize abortion law. The Detroit Free Press claims that the move would be possible in theory but more complicated in practice, noting that availability is not the same as accessibility. Withdrawing an abortion provider could be challenging, as could pandemic-related precautions at the international border and additional travel costs. Since a 1969 reform under the Liberal government of Pierre Trudeau, section 251 of the Penal Code narrowly allowed abortions in cases where a committee found that a woman`s health or life was in danger, but it still punished health care providers and women themselves for participating in other abortions. Nationally, information is provided by abortion rights groups such as the Canadian Coalition for Abortion Rights and the National Abortion Federation, which maintain detailed lists of abortion clinics by province and the maximum length of pregnancy up to which the clinic will offer types of abortion. [6] [68] These websites also contain information on how to obtain medication related to medical abortions, how to obtain financial support for travel and accommodation expenses, follow-up materials, child care and various other needs. [68] [6] The U.S. Supreme Court decision, Roe v. Wade – an attack on the rights of women and 2SLGBTQQIA+ people who can get pregnant in America – has sent shockwaves of fear and grief around the world.

Nearly half of all states have laws that can restrict access to legal abortion, with 13 „trigger laws” already in place to ban abortion that went into effect when Roe v. Wade was overthrown. Now, women and the 2SLGBTQQIA+ community in Canada are wondering if we are vulnerable to the same regressive and anti-choice influences. Abortion in Canada is legal at all stages of pregnancy and is publicly funded as a medical procedure under the combined effects of the Canada Health Act and provincial health systems. [1] However, access to services and resources varies by region. While some non-legal barriers to entry remain,[1] Canada is the only country that does not impose criminal restrictions on abortion. [2] [3] However, the availability of abortions is subject to regulatory guidelines for physicians in the provincial health care system. [4] [5] The general rule is that few providers offer abortion treatment beyond 23 weeks and 6 days, but in some cases there may be exceptions. [6] [7] Provincial guidelines also contribute to this injustice.