Mexico decriminalizes abortion, extending Latin American trend of widening access to procedure

Mexico’s Supreme Court has thrown out all federal criminal penalties for abortion. The sweeping ruling issued Wednesday declared that national laws prohibiting the procedure are unconstitutional and violate women’s rights. The decision extended Latin America’s trend of widening abortion access. The high court ordered that abortion be removed from the federal penal code. The decision will require the federal public health service and all federal health institutions to offer abortion to anyone who requests it.