On Thursday, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy signed into law a bill that protects the right to seek an abortion in the state.
The bill's passage comes as the newly-conservative U.S. Supreme Court weighs a case that could result in the rolling back of the federally-protected right for a person to abort a pregnancy.
According to NorthJersey.com the Freedom of Reproductive Choice Act guarantees the "fundamental right of reproductive autonomy."
It also directs the state to conduct a study to determine whether financial barriers are impeding low-income and uninsured women from seeking abortions. NJ.com reports that if the studies prove that to be the case, the department may direct insurers and state agencies to cover the cost of the procedures.
“The Supreme Court is preparing to take a wrecking ball to Roe v. Wade, and that would also demolish our case law in New Jersey,” Murphy said before signing the bill Thursday, according to NJ.com. “Neither I or those with us today can allow that to happen.”
The bill Murphy signed Thursday is a scaled-back version of an earlier bill, which would have required health insurers to cover abortions and birth control at no cost out of pocket, according to NorthJersey.com.
