Indiana’s near-total abortion ban will go into effect Aug. 1. Here’s what you need to know.

INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana’s near-total abortion ban will go into effect Tuesday.

The United States Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 ruling that legalized abortions in the U.S., in 2022.

Indiana was the first state in the nation to pass new legislation restricting abortion access.

Senate Bill 1 was passed last August, banning all abortions except in cases of rape or incest and in the first 20 weeks of pregnancy if needed to save the mother’s life or if the fetus has a fatal abnormality.

The ban will replace state laws that generally prohibited abortions after the 20th week of pregnancy and tightly restricted it after the 13th week.

A doctor could now lose their medical license if they perform an illegal abortion or fail to file required reports. The Senate passed the bill with a 28-19 vote and the House passed the bill with a 62-38 vote.

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However, the ACLU of Indiana sued the state to block the law in two separate cases.

The first lawsuit was filed on behalf of Planned Parenthood. It argued the abortion ban was unconstitutional. In June, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled the ban is constitutional.

Another lawsuit was filed on behalf of Hoosier Jews for Choice and five women who have religious beliefs that they must be able to obtain an abortion under Indiana’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

“RFRA, a law that passed the Indiana legislature in 2015, prohibits government action that interferes with a person’s religious exercise, unless the government can prove it has a compelling reason for doing so that is the least restrictive alternative available,” a press release from the ACLU said.

The lawsuit argues that although some religions believe that human life begins at conception, that opinion isn’t shared by all religions or religious people.

The plaintiffs represent faiths including Judaism, Islam and “independent spiritual beliefs”, according to the release.

While that case is still ongoing, if it is won, a person could still receive an abortion in the state of Indiana with a religious exemption.

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Planned Parenthood temporarily paused their abortion care at their location on Georgetown Road from Dec. 2022 until last month.

Indiana abortion clinic operators have told The Associated Press that they’ll stop offering abortions when the ban takes effect but continue to support patients with information about out-of-state clinics.

Planned Parenthood plans to keep its four Indiana clinics that offer abortions open and provide sexually transmitted disease testing and treatment, and contraception and cancer screenings, which it says comprise the bulk of its services.

Indiana University Health, the state’s largest hospital system, has set up advisory teams that include a lawyer for consultations on whether patients meet the legal requirements for abortions.

When the law starts being enforced on Tuesday, Indiana will join more than a dozen states with abortion bans.