Proposition 1, on the ballot this coming Tuesday, could restore abortion rights in Idaho. Opponents of the initiative say, if passed, it would allow “on-demand abortions until seven and eight months” in a pregnancy, but the data shows terminations later in gestation are very rare.
Annual reports from the State Department of Health and Welfare show that, in the 15 years between 2011 and 2025, seven pregnancies were terminated in Idaho after the 20-week gestation mark. That represents roughly 0.04% of the total terminations reported in that time period. Two of those have occurred since the abortion ban went into effect in 2022.
Options for care in Idaho are limited. Physicians can provide abortions in cases of rape, incest or when the life of the mother – not her health – are in danger.
Proposition 1 would allow abortions up to fetal viability and in case of medical emergencies.
The “Too Extreme for Idaho” campaign calls the ballot initiative a “backdoor attempt to legalize late-term abortions.”
OB-GYNs track pregnancies by weeks, not months, to follow gestational age. Medical providers do not use the phrase “late-term abortion,” which is vague and politicized. Instead they follow gestational thresholds to determine viability and likelihood of survival pre-term.
According to the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists, viability happens roughly between 22 and 25 weeks.
Alexis Bridges is an OB-GYN at St. Luke’s who takes care of patients with high-risk pregnancies.
“Viability is defined as the time at which if we attempted resuscitation on the baby, we think there is a chance that they can survive,” she said.
Terminations after that typically occur due to severe birth defects or lethal fetal anomalies.
Lethal fetal anomalies – which is when vital organs, like the brain, kidneys or lungs simply do not develop – are not compatible with life, she said.
“Unfortunately,” Bridges added, “those kiddos can never survive.”
Under Idaho’s current law, physicians cannot terminate a pregnancy for a lethal fetal anomaly unless the mother is at risk of dying.
Terminations past 20+ weeks gestation are extremely rare in Idaho, she noted. For the patients she sees, a lethal fetal anomaly diagnosis is devastating.
“To be told that you most likely are not going to be able to take home a child, it's heartbreaking,” Bridges said.
“Someone might say, ‘well, why would it be necessary to have a termination? There might be patients that want to, even though they're carrying a baby with a lethal fetal anomaly, they might want to carry that pregnancy to term,'” she said,. “And of course, we're fully supportive of that.”
But those pregnancies increase the risk of severe complications like preeclampsia or hemorrhaging, which are leading causes of maternal deaths, according to the World Health Organization.
While some women decide to still carry to term, others, knowing their baby will never survive, choose termination, Bridges said.
“We know these are some of the hardest decisions that families are ever faced with,” she added. Bridges says these are the patients who are referred to out-of-state care.
In 2024, St. Luke’s reported a sharp increase in pregnant patients being flown out of the state to receive care.
“I care so much about my patients,” Bridges said. “It's heartbreaking to have to just send them away and, and not be able to be involved in that care, not be able to make sure that they know you're there for them in that moment.”
“I really wish that I could provide the full spectrum of care that I am fully trained to provide but I cannot currently under the Idaho laws,” she added.
If passed, Prop 1 could go into effect on Jan. 1, 2027.
