Not long after the Supreme Court ruled to overturn Roe v. Wade, making abortion a state issue, the Democrats and the Biden administration voiced their disdain for supposedly stripping women of their rights. The latest state to draw criticism from the Biden administration is Indiana as their new law is set to go into effect on September 15th. The restrictions surrounding abortion have expectations for rape, incest, and even protecting the mother when her life is in jeopardy. That still didn’t stop White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre from referring to it as a “devastating step”.

On Saturday, holding a press conference, Karine Jean-Pierre lashed out at Indiana and their new law, stating, “The Indiana Legislature took a devastating step as a result of the Supreme Court’s extreme decision to overturn Roe v. Wade and eliminate women’s constitutionally-protected right to abortion. And, it’s another radical step by Republican legislators to take away women’s reproductive rights and freedom, and put personal health care decisions in the hands of politicians rather than women and their doctors.” 

Although President Joe Biden is supposedly set to take action to protect abortion under federal law, states continue to move forward. Republican Governor Eric Holcomb released a statement about signing the bill.  “Following the overturning of Roe, I stated clearly that I would be willing to support legislation that made progress in protecting life. In my view, SEA 1 accomplishes this goal following its passage in both chambers of the Indiana General Assembly with a solid majority of support.” 

The Governor continued in his statement, “These actions followed long days of hearings filled with sobering and personal testimony from citizens and elected representatives on this emotional and complex topic. Ultimately, those voices shaped and informed the final contents of the legislation and its carefully negotiated exceptions to address some of the unthinkable circumstances a woman or unborn child might face.” 

While pro-life groups celebrated the new law, Indiana’s largest employer Eli Lilly and Co. shared their own statement, condemning the law. “While we have expanded our employee health plan coverage to include travel for reproductive services unavailable locally, that may not be enough for some current and potential employees. Given this new law, we will be forced to plan for more employment growth outside our home state.”