Michigan Abortion Laws

Abortion is legal in Michigan through fetal viability. Thereafter, the state may regulate abortion. However, it will remain legal when necessary to preserve the life or health of the pregnant individual.

Michigan Abortion Law After Dobbs

In June 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court overruled Roe v. Wade, which had provided a right to abortion. In Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, the Court returned to states the power to regulate, even prohibit, abortion.

Although Michigan had a pre-Roe law on the books enacted in 1931 that banned virtually all abortions, a court had blocked enforcement of that law. The state legislature later repealed the 1931 abortion ban.

In November 2022, Michigan voters approved Proposal 3, a state constitutional amendment placing a right to reproductive freedom into the state constitution. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU of Michigan) and Planned Parenthood of Michigan were key supporters of the amendment. That provision protects an individual's right to decide matters related to pregnancy.

It includes decisions related to prenatal care, childbirth, postpartum care, contraception, sterilization, abortion care, miscarriage management, and infertility care. The state may regulate abortion after fetal viability only if it can show a compelling state interest achieved by the least restrictive means.

Even then, the state cannot prohibit an abortion that in the professional judgment of the attending health care professional is medically indicated to protect the life or physical or mental health of the pregnant individual.

Abortion After the State Constitutional Amendment

Right to Life organizations in Michigan challenged the new state constitutional right to abortion in court. Likewise, abortion providers filed a lawsuit to end the 24-hour waiting period and informed consent laws. As of early 2024, these matters remain pending in court.

In 2023, the Michigan state legislature passed the Reproductive Health Act. It was signed into law by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and took effect in 2024. It included the repeal of a law that required providers to have a separation insurance rider for abortion care and eliminated certain restrictions on clinics that increased costs to prevent their operation.

The law also removed certain criminal penalties faced by healthcare professionals.

Although Democrats in the State House also sought to end the state's 24-hour waiting period for abortion and to permit the use of state Medicaid funds for abortion, their efforts fell short on these measures in a close vote.

Michigan Abortion Laws At a Glance

Learn more about Michigan abortion laws in the following table. See FindLaw's Reproductive Rights section for additional articles and resources.

Note: State laws are constantly changing -- contact a Michigan constitutional attorney or healthcare attorney, or conduct your own legal research to verify the status of any state law(s) you are reviewing.

How Michigan Compares to Other States

With the adoption of state constitutional protections for reproductive health care, the state of Michigan has only limited abortion restrictions. Most state laws, like those in Michigan, provide for legal abortion through fetal viability at about 22-24 weeks into a pregnancy.

More restrictive states, like Texas, may ban all abortions except those necessary to save the life of the pregnant patient.

The provision to outlaw abortion has remained controversial in American society. Political parties stake out their positions, but individual legislators don't always toe the party line.

In states that seek to enact or maintain restrictions on most abortions, lawmakers have moved to limit abortion access. They may set prohibitions as early as six to 15 weeks into pregnancy. Even in restrictive states, there are sometimes exceptions when the pregnancy was the result of rape or incest.

A Note About Medication Abortion

Medication abortion occurs most often through the use of a two-drug regimen. The first drug of that two-part process is mifepristone. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that the majority of abortions obtained by pregnant women in 2021 occurred via medication abortion.

In 2022, abortion opponents filed a legal challenge to medication abortion in Texas federal district court. The plaintiffs sought to overturn the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for the use of mifepristone, a drug approved by the FDA in 2000.

They also requested the invalidation of FDA rule changes in 2016 and 2021 that eased regulations on the prescription and distribution of the drug through the mail. A lower court injunction is now on hold. The U.S. Supreme Court will likely hear and decide the case in 2024.

Research the Law

• Michigan Law
• Official State Codes - Links to the official online statutes (laws) in all 50 states and DC.
• State Abortion Laws - Links to the abortion laws of all 50 states and D.C.

Michigan Abortion Laws: Related Resources

• Abortion Rights FAQ
• What are Reproductive Rights?
• Find a Michigan Family Law Attorney