{"schema":"abhortion.org/legislation.full/v1","id":"legality-us-tn","type":"legislation","level":"state","jurisdiction":"Tennessee","as_of_date":"2026-07-12","research_completed_date":"2026-07-12","headline":"Total ban, enforced","summary":"Tennessee prohibits abortion from fertilization with a single medical-emergency exception; the ban has been in effect since August 25, 2022, and is not enjoined.","machine_readable_summary":{"legal_classification":"total_ban","gestational_limit_weeks":0,"limit_measured_from":"fertilization","abortion_currently_available":"severely_restricted","ban_or_limit_enjoined":false,"mother_expressly_exempt":true,"mother_prosecutable_in_practice":false,"self_managed_abortion_criminalized":false,"abortion_charged_as_homicide":false,"fetal_homicide_law":true,"fetal_wrongful_death_action":true,"personhood_language_in_law":true,"personhood_contradiction":true,"medication_abortion_distinct_status":false,"mailing_pills_banned":true,"method_bans":["d_and_x"],"telehealth_prescribing_allowed":false,"physician_only_law":true,"provider_max_penalty":"Class C felony, 3-15 years imprisonment, up to $10,000 fine","helpers_criminally_exposed":true,"travel_assistance_criminalized":true,"civil_bounty_law":false,"shield_state":false,"waiting_period_hours":48,"state_scripted_counseling":true,"ultrasound_required":"mandatory_performed","in_person_visits_required":2,"parental_involvement":"consent_one_parent","judicial_bypass_available":true,"spousal_consent_or_notice_on_books":false,"medicaid_coverage":"hyde_only","private_insurance_restricted":true,"state_funding_posture":"defunds_providers","rape_incest_exception":false,"exceptions_present":["life","physical_health","ectopic_miscarriage_carveout"],"major_pending_change":true},"links":{"html":"https://www.abhortion.org/legislation/tn.html","markdown":"https://www.abhortion.org/legislation/tn.md","summary_json":"https://www.abhortion.org/legislation/tn.json","full_json":"https://www.abhortion.org/legislation/tn-full.json","verbose_json":"https://www.abhortion.org/legislation/tn-verbose.json"},"overview":{"title":"Total ban, enforced","summary":"Tennessee prohibits abortion from fertilization with a single medical-emergency exception; the ban has been in effect since August 25, 2022, and is not enjoined.","description":"Abortion is illegal in Tennessee at every stage of pregnancy—from the moment a sperm fertilizes an egg. The only situation in which a doctor may legally perform an abortion is to prevent the pregnant person's death or to prevent a serious risk of substantial and irreversible damage to a major bodily function, such as infertility or organ failure. There are no exceptions for rape, incest, or fatal fetal anomalies. The pregnant person herself cannot be prosecuted under the abortion ban. The Tennessee Constitution was amended in 2014 to expressly remove any right to abortion, so state courts cannot find such a right in the state constitution. Tennessee is one of the most restrictive abortion jurisdictions in the nation.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-213"},{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/constitution/tennessee/article-i/section-36"}]},"sections":{"definitions":{"title":"Defined from fertilization; excludes ectopic/molar/miscarriage","summary":"The statute defines abortion broadly from fertilization but carves out ectopic and molar pregnancies and removal of a dead fetus.","description":"Under Tennessee law, 'abortion' means using any instrument, medicine, or substance to end a pregnancy with intent other than producing a live birth, preserving the child's life after birth, ending an ectopic or molar pregnancy, or removing a dead fetus. A person is 'pregnant' when a living unborn child is within her body from fertilization until birth. This means that treating an ectopic pregnancy, a molar pregnancy, or a miscarriage where there is no fetal cardiac activity is not considered an abortion under the law. Emergency contraception and IUDs are also not abortions because they are defined as preventing conception, not ending a pregnancy. IVF embryos outside the womb are not reached by the abortion definition, which requires a pregnancy within the woman's body.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-213"}]},"current_status":{"title":"Total ban from fertilization since August 25, 2022","summary":"The trigger ban at Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-15-213 prohibits abortion from fertilization with a narrow medical-emergency exception; it supersedes all other Tennessee gestational bans.","description":"Since August 25, 2022, abortion has been illegal in Tennessee from the moment of fertilization. The only way a doctor can lawfully perform an abortion is to prevent the pregnant person's death or to prevent a serious risk of permanent and severe damage to a major bodily function. The doctor must perform the abortion in a licensed hospital or ambulatory surgical treatment center and must, unless doing so would pose greater risk to the patient, use the method that gives the unborn child the best chance of survival. The ban cannot be used to prosecute the pregnant person herself. All other abortion restrictions in Tennessee law—including a pre-Roe ban (repealed), gestational limits at 6, 8, 10, 12, 15, 18, 20, 21, 22, 23, and 24 weeks, and a viability ban—are superseded while the trigger ban is in effect, but remain on the books and would spring back if the trigger ban were ever enjoined.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-213"},{"name":"U.S. Supreme Court","href":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/21pdf/19-1392_6j37.pdf"}]},"enforcement_status":{"title":"Fully enforced; limited temporary injunction on medical-emergency scope","summary":"The trigger ban is in full effect; a state-court temporary injunction in Blackmon/Phillips v. State clarifies listed medical conditions but does not suspend the ban.","description":"The total abortion ban is in full force in Tennessee and is being enforced. There is no court order blocking the ban itself. However, in October 2024, a state court issued a temporary order in a lawsuit called Blackmon v. State (now Phillips v. State) that identifies specific medical conditions—such as water breaking too early before the fetus can survive, dilation of the cervix before viability, and fatal fetal diagnoses causing maternal health complications—as falling within the medical emergency exception. This means doctors can treat those conditions without fear of prosecution or license discipline while the temporary order is in place. The broader lawsuit seeking a permanent clarification of the medical exception is ongoing.","verification":"semi_verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Center for Reproductive Rights","href":"https://reproductiverights.org/news/blackmon-v-tennessee-abortion-ban-temporarily-blocked"},{"name":"FindLaw","href":"https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/us-dis-crt-m-d-ten-nas-div/117492623.html"}]},"exceptions":{"life":{"title":"Life exception: permitted with restrictions","type":"life","summary":"Abortion is permitted when, in a physician's reasonable medical judgment, it is necessary to prevent the pregnant woman's death.","description":"A doctor may perform an abortion if they determine, using reasonable medical judgment, that the abortion is necessary to prevent the pregnant person's death. The procedure must take place in a licensed hospital or ambulatory surgical treatment center. The doctor must also use the method that gives the unborn child the best chance of survival, unless that method would pose a greater risk to the patient. A determination based on the patient's mental health or risk of self-harm does not qualify.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-213"}]},"physical_health":{"title":"Health exception: serious risk of major impairment","type":"physical_health","summary":"Abortion is permitted to prevent 'serious risk of substantial and irreversible impairment of a major bodily function' as determined by a physician.","description":"The law also allows an abortion when continuing the pregnancy would create a serious risk of severe and permanent damage to a major bodily function—such as losing fertility or the function of a major organ. The April 2025 legislative clarification (Public Chapter 217) defines specific conditions that qualify, including water breaking before the fetus can survive (PPROM), dilation of the cervix before viability, severe preeclampsia, mirror syndrome from fetal hydrops, and infections that could cause uterine rupture or infertility. Mental health conditions and self-harm risk are explicitly excluded from qualifying.","verification":"semi_verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Tennessee Secretary of State","href":"https://publications.tnsosfiles.com/acts/114/pub/pc0217.pdf"}]},"mental_health":{"title":"Mental health: expressly excluded","type":"mental_health","summary":"The statute explicitly provides that the medical-emergency exception does not apply for any reason relating to the pregnant woman's mental health.","description":"Mental health conditions—including depression, anxiety, suicidal thoughts, or any psychiatric diagnosis—cannot justify an abortion under Tennessee law. The statute says that a doctor cannot rely on a diagnosis that the patient might harm herself or on any reason related to mental health to determine that an abortion is medically necessary.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-213"}]},"rape":{"title":"Rape: no exception","type":"rape","summary":"Tennessee's abortion ban provides no exception for pregnancy resulting from rape; the legislature has repeatedly rejected bills to add one.","description":"There is no rape exception in Tennessee's abortion ban. A person who becomes pregnant through rape cannot legally obtain an abortion in Tennessee. The state legislature has considered but rejected bills that would have added exceptions for rape. The 2014 constitutional amendment expressly authorizes the legislature to regulate abortion 'including, but not limited to, circumstances of pregnancy resulting from rape or incest.'","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/constitution/tennessee/article-i/section-36"}]},"incest":{"title":"Incest: no exception","type":"incest","summary":"Tennessee's abortion ban provides no exception for pregnancy resulting from incest.","description":"There is no incest exception in Tennessee's abortion ban. A minor who becomes pregnant through incest cannot legally obtain an abortion in Tennessee without meeting the medical emergency standard. The parental-consent statute does excuse the requirement of obtaining consent from a parent against whom criminal incest charges are pending, but this does not create an exception to the abortion ban itself.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-37/chapter-10/part-3/section-37-10-303"}]},"fatal_fetal_anomaly":{"title":"Fatal fetal anomaly: no standalone exception","type":"fatal_fetal_anomaly","summary":"Fatal fetal diagnosis alone does not qualify; only when combined with maternal health complications may it fall under the medical-emergency exception.","description":"Tennessee law does not have a standalone exception for fatal fetal anomalies. A person carrying a fetus diagnosed with a condition that is incompatible with life cannot obtain an abortion based solely on that diagnosis. Under the Blackmon temporary injunction and the 2025 statutory clarification, a fatal fetal diagnosis may support performing an abortion only if the diagnosis is leading to maternal health complications such as severe preeclampsia, mirror syndrome, or infection that threatens the patient's life, fertility, or major bodily functions.","verification":"semi_verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Center for Reproductive Rights","href":"https://reproductiverights.org/news/blackmon-v-tennessee-abortion-ban-temporarily-blocked"}]},"ectopic_miscarriage_carveout":{"title":"Ectopic/molar/miscarriage: not 'abortion'","type":"ectopic_miscarriage_carveout","summary":"Treatment of ectopic pregnancies, molar pregnancies, and removal of a dead fetus are excluded from the statutory definition of abortion and are therefore not prohibited.","description":"Tennessee's abortion ban does not apply to treating ectopic pregnancies (where the embryo implants outside the uterus), molar pregnancies (abnormal tissue growth), or removing a fetus that has already died. These are not defined as 'abortion' under the law. This means that medical treatment for miscarriage in which there is no fetal cardiac activity—including intact D&E procedures—is legal. Emergency contraception (Plan B), IUDs, and other contraceptives are also not affected by the abortion ban.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-213"}]}},"methods":{"procedural_surgical":{"title":"Procedural abortion: banned from fertilization","summary":"All procedural (surgical) abortion is prohibited from fertilization; intact D&E (D&X) is separately banned by a statute that remains on the books.","description":"Surgical or procedural abortion is illegal in Tennessee from the moment of fertilization. Any method—suction aspiration, dilation and evacuation (D&E), or intact dilation and extraction—is covered by the general ban. There is a separate law (Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-15-209) that specifically bans intact D&E procedures (sometimes called 'partial-birth abortion') as a Class C felony; this law is on the books with its own life-endangerment exception. Because the trigger ban supersedes other abortion restrictions, the method-specific ban is somewhat redundant, but it would remain in force if the trigger ban were ever enjoined.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-213"},{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-209"}]},"medication":{"title":"Medication abortion: banned; physician-only in-person dispensing","summary":"Medication abortion using mifepristone/misoprostol is prohibited by the total ban; separate statutes require in-person dispensing by a qualified physician and prohibit telemedicine prescribing.","description":"Medication abortion—using pills like mifepristone and misoprostol to end a pregnancy—is illegal in Tennessee because the total ban covers 'any medicine' or 'drug' used to terminate a pregnancy. Even if the ban did not apply, separate state laws create additional barriers: the Tennessee Abortion-Inducing Drug Risk Protocol Act (2022) requires that abortion pills be provided only by a qualified physician, in person, after an in-person examination, and explicitly prohibits delivering the drugs by mail, courier, or telemedicine. Violating the medication-abortion rules can result in a fine of $50,000 plus civil liability. A physician who prescribes abortion pills via telemedicine, and a pharmacist who fills such a prescription, would both face exposure.","verification":"semi_verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-63/chapter-6/part-11/section-63-6-1103"}]},"self_managed":{"title":"Self-managed: woman exempt; providers still exposed","summary":"The pregnant woman cannot be prosecuted under the criminal abortion statute for self-managing an abortion, but anyone assisting her may face criminal liability.","description":"Under Tennessee law, a pregnant person cannot be charged with a crime for ending her own pregnancy or for attempting to do so. The trigger ban explicitly says it 'does not subject the pregnant woman upon whom an abortion is performed or attempted to criminal conviction or penalty.' This means that a person who takes abortion pills she obtained herself, or uses any other method to end her own pregnancy, is shielded from prosecution under the abortion statute. However, anyone who helps her—by obtaining the pills, providing them, or otherwise assisting—could face criminal charges. Also, even though the criminal abortion ban exempts her, the fetal homicide statute (§ 39-13-107) also exempts pregnant women, so she is not prosecutable under that law either for self-managed abortion.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-213"},{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-13/part-1/section-39-13-107"}]}},"actors":{"who_may_perform":{"title":"Licensed physicians only; no APCs; hospital/ASTC required","summary":"Only licensed physicians may perform or prescribe abortions, and only in a licensed hospital or ambulatory surgical treatment center; physician assistants are explicitly excluded from providing medication abortion.","description":"Only a licensed physician (an MD or DO) may legally perform an abortion or prescribe abortion medication in Tennessee. Advanced-practice clinicians such as nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and certified nurse-midwives are not permitted to provide abortion care. For the medical emergency exception, the procedure must be done in a licensed hospital or ambulatory surgical treatment center. The law specifically says physician assistants cannot provide abortion medication. The admitting-privileges requirement for physicians and the requirement that clinics performing 50 or more surgical abortions per year meet hospital-like building standards are both permanently blocked by a federal court order.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-213"},{"name":"Tennessee Secretary of State","href":"https://publications.tnsosfiles.com/rules/1130/1130-01.20230424.pdf"}]},"criminal_civil_exposure":{"pregnant_woman":{"title":"Expressly exempt from criminal liability","summary":"The trigger ban explicitly exempts the pregnant woman from criminal conviction or penalty; the fetal homicide statute contains a parallel exemption.","description":"A pregnant person in Tennessee cannot be prosecuted under the criminal abortion statute for having an abortion—whether performed by someone else or self-managed. The law says explicitly that the criminal abortion ban 'does not subject the pregnant woman upon whom an abortion is performed or attempted to criminal conviction or penalty.' Additionally, the fetal homicide law exempts pregnant women from liability for acts or omissions with respect to their own embryos or fetuses. This means that a person who self-manages an abortion with pills obtained out of state or by mail, or who travels out of state for a legal abortion, faces no criminal exposure under Tennessee abortion law. There is no civil-bounty mechanism allowing private lawsuits against the pregnant woman.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-213"}]},"physician":{"title":"Class C felony, 3-15 years, license revocation","summary":"A physician who performs or attempts an unlawful abortion faces a Class C felony (3-15 years imprisonment, up to $10,000 fine), mandatory reporting to the medical board, and potential license revocation.","description":"A doctor who performs an abortion outside the medical-emergency exception faces a Class C felony charge, which carries 3 to 15 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000. The doctor must report any criminal charge to the Board of Medical Examiners within seven days. Violating the informed-consent and waiting-period requirements is a Class E felony (1-6 years) or a Class A misdemeanor depending on the specific violation, and the doctor's medical license can be suspended or revoked.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-213"},{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-202"}]},"prescriber_pharmacist":{"title":"Non-physician prescribers barred; pharmacists exposed","summary":"Non-physician prescribers (NPs, PAs, midwives) cannot prescribe abortion medication; pharmacists filling such prescriptions may face accomplice liability and board discipline.","description":"Nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and certified nurse-midwives are not permitted to prescribe or dispense abortion medication in Tennessee—the law limits this to licensed physicians. A pharmacist who fills an out-of-state prescription for mifepristone or misoprostol could face disciplinary action from the Board of Pharmacy and potential accomplice liability under the criminal abortion statute, though no known prosecutions of pharmacists have occurred in Tennessee.","verification":"semi_verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-63/chapter-6/part-11/section-63-6-1103"}]},"nurses_and_staff":{"title":"Clinical staff: accomplice exposure possible","summary":"Nurses and clinical staff who assist in an unlawful abortion could face accomplice liability, though the primary statutes target the performing physician.","description":"The abortion ban directly targets the person who 'performs or attempts to perform an abortion,' which is typically the physician. However, nurses, physician assistants, and other clinic staff who knowingly assist in an unlawful abortion could face prosecution under Tennessee's general accomplice liability statute, which treats accomplices as if they committed the offense themselves. In practice, prosecutions of clinical support staff have not occurred in Tennessee, but the legal exposure exists.","verification":"semi_verified","confidence":"medium","sources":[{"name":"Tennessee Code via Lexis (secondary reference)","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-11/part-4/section-39-11-402"}]},"other_helpers":{"title":"Helpers: criminal and civil exposure exists","summary":"Anyone who assists a pregnant person in obtaining an unlawful abortion—by providing funds, transportation, or other aid—may face accomplice liability; helping a minor triggers specific criminal penalties.","description":"People who help someone obtain an abortion in Tennessee—such as a friend who drives, a parent who pays, or an employer who reimburses travel—could potentially face criminal charges as accomplices. There is a specific law (Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-15-201) that makes it a Class A misdemeanor (punishable by up to 11 months and 29 days in jail) for an adult to 'recruit, harbor, or transport' a pregnant unemancipated minor for the purpose of obtaining an abortion, regardless of whether the abortion would be performed in Tennessee or another state. The federal court in Welty v. Dunaway permanently blocked the 'recruitment' portion of this law on free-speech grounds, but the 'harboring' and 'transportation' portions remain enforceable. Violators of this law can also be sued in civil court for the 'wrongful death of an unborn child' by the minor's parents or the biological father (unless the pregnancy resulted from his criminal act). Parents and legal guardians of the minor are exempt from this law.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-201"}]}}},"aiding_and_assisting":{"travel_assistance":{"title":"Travel assistance: criminalized for minors; adults unclear","summary":"Transporting a pregnant minor out of state for an abortion without parental consent is a Class A misdemeanor; assisting an adult's travel is not separately criminalized but may carry accomplice exposure.","description":"If you help a pregnant person under 18 travel across state lines to get an abortion without their parent's or guardian's written, notarized consent, you could face up to 11 months and 29 days in jail under Tennessee's 'abortion trafficking' law. This applies even if the abortion would be legal in the destination state. You could also be sued for money damages by the minor's parents or the biological father. The part of the law that criminalized 'recruiting' (talking to a minor about getting an abortion out of state) was struck down by a federal court as a First Amendment violation. For adults, there is no specific law criminalizing travel assistance for abortion, but general accomplice-liability law means a prosecutor could theoretically charge someone who helps an adult obtain an illegal abortion.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-201"}]},"funding":{"title":"Funding: local-government ban; private funding generally lawful","summary":"Local governments may not spend public funds to facilitate out-of-state abortion travel; private individuals and organizations face no specific funding ban but could face accomplice liability.","description":"Tennessee law prohibits county, city, and metropolitan governments from spending public money on travel to another state for an abortion that would be illegal in Tennessee. This means local governments cannot fund travel, lodging, or other costs for residents seeking out-of-state abortions. Private individuals and abortion funds that help pay for abortion care or travel are not directly covered by this statute, but they could potentially face accomplice liability if they intentionally assist someone in obtaining an unlawful abortion. In practice, abortion funds continue to operate, providing financial assistance to Tennessee residents traveling to states where abortion is legal.","verification":"semi_verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"FindLaw","href":"https://codes.findlaw.com/tn/title-7-consolidated-governments-and-local-governmental-functions-and-entities/tn-code-sect-7-3-106"}]},"mailing_pills":{"title":"Mailing pills: prohibited","summary":"Tennessee law prohibits providing abortion-inducing drugs by mail, courier, or delivery service, with civil penalties of up to $50,000.","description":"It is illegal in Tennessee to send abortion pills—mifepristone or misoprostol—by mail, courier, or delivery service to a patient in Tennessee. The law carries a civil penalty of up to $50,000 per violation. This applies to both in-state and out-of-state senders. However, because the pregnant person herself cannot be prosecuted under the abortion ban, a person who receives pills by mail is not criminally exposed under the abortion statute, though the sender is.","verification":"semi_verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-63/chapter-6/part-11/section-63-6-1103"}]},"providing_information":{"title":"Information-sharing: First Amendment protected","summary":"Providing information or referrals about lawful out-of-state abortion to adults is constitutionally protected; the 'recruitment' ban on speaking to minors about out-of-state abortion was permanently enjoined.","description":"Talking to an adult about how to get a legal abortion in another state—giving them clinic names, websites, or logistical information—is protected free speech under the First Amendment and is not criminalized by Tennessee law. For minors, the situation is more complicated: Tennessee passed a law making it a crime to 'recruit' a minor to get an out-of-state abortion, but a federal court permanently blocked that 'recruitment' provision in July 2025, ruling that it violated the First Amendment. The remaining parts of the law—banning 'harboring' and 'transporting' minors without parental consent—are still enforceable, but merely giving a minor information or referring her to resources is now protected speech.","verification":"semi_verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"FindLaw","href":"https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/us-dis-crt-m-d-ten-nas-div/117492623.html"}]},"civil_bounty":{"title":"No SB8-style civil bounty","summary":"Tennessee has no statute authorizing private civil enforcement of abortion restrictions through citizen lawsuits against providers or helpers, unlike Texas's SB8.","description":"Tennessee does not have a law like Texas's Senate Bill 8 that allows private citizens to sue anyone who 'aids or abets' an abortion and collect a bounty. The only private civil remedy in Tennessee abortion law is the wrongful-death action available to parents of a minor against an adult who violated the abortion-trafficking statute—a specific, narrow cause of action, not a general bounty mechanism.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-201"}]}},"procedural_requirements":{"waiting_period":{"title":"48-hour mandatory waiting period","summary":"A physician must provide mandated information in person, after which 48 hours must pass before an abortion can be performed.","description":"Even if a medical emergency qualifies a patient for an abortion, the standard informed-consent procedure requires a 48-hour waiting period after the physician provides certain information orally and in person. This means the patient must make at least two separate trips to the provider: one for the counseling session and another at least 48 hours later for the procedure. If a court were to block the 48-hour period, a 24-hour fallback waiting period would take effect. All of these requirements can be waived if a medical emergency as defined in the informed-consent statute prevents compliance, but the emergency definition in the consent statute is worded differently from the trigger ban's emergency exception, creating potential confusion.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-202"}]},"mandatory_counseling":{"title":"State-scripted counseling, in person, by physician","summary":"The physician must orally inform the patient in person of specified information, including gestational age, viability, the availability of agencies to assist with pregnancy and childbirth, and the medical risks of abortion and childbirth.","description":"Before an abortion can be performed, the physician must tell the patient—in person, not over the phone or by video—a specific set of information required by law: that she is pregnant, the probable gestational age of the fetus, the opportunity to see ultrasound results, whether a fetal heartbeat was detected, that the fetus may be viable if past 24 weeks LMP, that public and private agencies are available to help with pregnancy and adoption, and the medical risks of both abortion and continuing the pregnancy. The physician must also inform her of the 'particular risks' of her specific pregnancy and of the method of abortion to be used. This information must be provided by the physician who will perform the abortion (or the referring physician), not by a nurse or counselor.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-202"}]},"ultrasound_requirement":{"title":"Ultrasound performed; viewing optional","summary":"If an ultrasound is performed, the patient must be offered the opportunity to learn the results; viewing or listening to the fetal heartbeat is not mandated.","description":"Tennessee law does not require that an ultrasound always be performed before an abortion. However, if an ultrasound is done as part of the pre-abortion examination, the person performing it must offer the patient the chance to learn the results. If the patient says yes, they must be told whether a fetal heartbeat was detected. The patient cannot be required to look at the ultrasound images or listen to the heartbeat—the law only requires that the information be offered and, if accepted, provided. The physician, ultrasound technician, and patient are not subject to penalty if the patient refuses to look at displayed images.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-202"}]},"in_person_visits":{"title":"Two in-person visits required","summary":"The combined requirements force at least two in-person visits: one for the mandated information and counseling, and another at least 48 hours later for the procedure.","description":"Under Tennessee law, a patient must make at least two separate trips to the provider. The first visit is for the physician to provide the state-mandated information in person. The second visit, at least 48 hours later, is for the abortion procedure itself. The patient must sign the consent form after the waiting period but before the procedure. These requirements can be waived only if a medical emergency prevents compliance.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-202"}]}},"minors":{"parental_involvement":{"title":"One-parent written consent; judicial bypass available","summary":"An unemancipated minor must obtain written consent from one parent or legal guardian, with judicial bypass available if consent is unavailable or refused.","description":"A person under 18 who is not emancipated (legally independent of their parents) must get written consent from one parent or legal guardian before having an abortion in Tennessee. The provider must keep documentation proving the parent-guardian relationship and the signed consent for at least one year. If a parent is not available, refuses to consent, or the minor does not want to seek parental consent, the minor can go to juvenile court to ask a judge for permission instead—this is called 'judicial bypass.' If a parent is facing criminal incest charges related to the pregnancy, that parent's consent is not required. Impersonating a parent or guardian to get around this requirement is a Class A misdemeanor.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-37/chapter-10/part-3/section-37-10-303"}]},"judicial_bypass":{"title":"Judicial bypass: petition to juvenile court","summary":"A minor may petition a juvenile court for waiver of parental consent; the court must rule within 48 hours of the petition's filing, and appeal is available.","description":"If a minor does not want to or cannot get a parent's consent, she can file a petition in juvenile court asking a judge to waive the consent requirement. The minor can file on her own behalf or through a 'next friend' (someone acting on her behalf). The court must schedule a hearing and rule within 48 hours of when the petition is filed—not counting weekends or holidays. The minor has the right to be represented by court-appointed counsel, and the proceedings are confidential. If the juvenile court denies the petition, the minor can appeal to the circuit court. If the circuit court denies it, she can appeal further to the court of appeals. The bypass standard focuses on whether the minor is mature and well-informed enough to make the decision herself or, if not, whether the abortion is in her best interests.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-37/chapter-10/part-3/section-37-10-303"}]}},"paternal_spousal_rights":{"consent_or_notice_laws":{"title":"No spousal consent or notice requirement","summary":"Tennessee has no statute requiring a married woman to obtain her husband's consent or give him notice before an abortion.","description":"Tennessee law does not require a married person to get their spouse's permission or even to notify their spouse before having an abortion. The U.S. Supreme Court struck down spousal-consent laws in Planned Parenthood v. Danforth (1976) and spousal-notice laws in Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992). Tennessee has never enacted a spousal-involvement statute, and the 2014 constitutional amendment and post-Dobbs legislative activity have not introduced one.","verification":"semi_verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/428/52/"}]},"enforceability":{"title":"Not applicable; no spousal law exists","summary":"Because Tennessee has no spousal-consent or notice statute, the enforceability analysis under Danforth and Casey does not arise in this jurisdiction.","description":"There is no spousal involvement law in Tennessee to be enforced or challenged. The question of whether the Supreme Court's Dobbs decision reopens the door to such laws is not currently relevant in Tennessee, since the state legislature has never enacted one.","verification":"not_applicable","confidence":"high"},"other_paternal_rights":{"title":"Biological father has standing in minor-trafficking civil action","summary":"The biological father may sue for wrongful death of an unborn child under the abortion-trafficking-of-minors statute, unless the pregnancy resulted from his criminal sexual conduct.","description":"In Tennessee, a biological father has no right to veto or be notified of an abortion. However, under the abortion-trafficking statute, the biological father of an unborn child aborted by a minor can sue the adult who helped the minor for wrongful-death damages—unless the pregnancy resulted from the father's own rape, statutory rape, incest, or similar criminal sexual conduct. The father does not have independent standing to seek an injunction against an abortion, and Tennessee courts have not recognized a putative-father registry relevant to abortion decisions.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-201"}]}},"fetal_personhood":{"fetal_homicide_law":{"title":"Fetus is homicide victim 'at any stage of gestation in utero'","summary":"Tennessee law treats a human embryo or fetus at any stage of gestation as a victim for homicide and assault offenses, with explicit exemptions for the pregnant woman and lawful medical procedures.","description":"Under Tennessee's fetal homicide law, an embryo or fetus at any stage of pregnancy—from fertilization onward—counts as a 'person' who can be the victim of crimes like murder, manslaughter, and assault. This means a third party who attacks a pregnant person and kills the fetus can be charged with murder or manslaughter. However, the law explicitly says that the pregnant woman cannot be charged under this section for anything she does in relation to her own embryo or fetus, and that lawful medical procedures—including abortions within the medical-emergency exception—are also exempt. This creates a system where the fetus is treated as a person for criminal victimization by third parties but not for actions of the pregnant woman herself.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-13/part-1/section-39-13-107"}]},"wrongful_death":{"title":"Wrongful death claim for viable fetus recognized","summary":"Tennessee courts recognize a civil wrongful-death action for a viable unborn child; the abortion-trafficking statute separately creates a specific wrongful-death claim for any aborted fetus of a minor.","description":"In Tennessee, the parents of a viable unborn child (one that could survive outside the womb) can bring a wrongful-death lawsuit if the child is killed through someone else's wrongful act. This is based on court decisions, not a specific statute. In addition, the abortion-trafficking-of-minors law creates a specific right to sue for 'wrongful death of an unborn child who was aborted,' regardless of gestational age, available to the minor's parents or the biological father (unless he committed the sex crime causing the pregnancy). Damages can include economic losses, pain and suffering, and punitive damages, plus attorney fees.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-201"}]},"personhood_definition":{"title":"'Unborn child' defined as individual from fertilization","summary":"The criminal abortion statute defines 'unborn child' as 'an individual living member of the species, homo sapiens, throughout the entire embryonic and fetal stages of the unborn child from fertilization until birth.'","description":"Tennessee law defines an 'unborn child' as a living individual human being from the moment of fertilization all the way through pregnancy until birth. This definition is used in the criminal abortion ban, the heartbeat law, and other statutes in the abortion code. The definition of 'pregnant' parallels this: 'the human female reproductive condition of having a living unborn child within her body throughout the entire embryonic and fetal stages of the unborn child from fertilization until birth.' This is a strong statutory declaration of fetal personhood from conception, but it operates only within the abortion chapter and the fetal-homicide statute—it does not make the fetus a 'person' for all purposes of Tennessee law (such as tax exemptions, census counting, or inheritance rights).","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-213"}]},"contradictions_analysis":"Tennessee's treatment of fetal personhood is internally contradictory in significant ways. On one hand, the criminal abortion code (Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-15-213(a)(4)) declares the unborn child to be 'an individual living member of the species, homo sapiens' from fertilization—language suggesting full personhood. The fetal-homicide statute (§ 39-13-107(a)) treats a fetus 'at any stage of gestation in utero' as a victim of murder and assault, with no viability threshold. The abortion-trafficking law (§ 39-15-201(e)) allows a civil wrongful-death action for any aborted fetus of a minor regardless of gestational age. The trigger ban's own findings (§ 39-15-214) speak of fetal heartbeat at five weeks and pain capacity. On the other hand, the very statute that declares the fetus an 'individual' person from fertilization simultaneously exempts the pregnant woman from any criminal liability (§ 39-15-213(e)) and carves out ectopic pregnancies, molar pregnancies, and dead fetuses from its scope (§ 39-15-213(a)(1)). The fetal-homicide statute exempts the pregnant woman (§ 39-13-107(c)) from what would otherwise be homicide liability. The criminal abortion ban permits—indeed, requires—the termination of a fetus when necessary to preserve the woman's life or major bodily functions. These provisions acknowledge that the pregnant woman's bodily autonomy and health interests can override the fetus's existence, a principle fundamentally at odds with the premise that the fetus is an 'individual' with rights co-equal to a born person. The Tennessee legislature has not attempted to reconcile the logical tension between declaring the fetus a 'person' from fertilization while simultaneously permitting its termination under defined circumstances and exempting the pregnant woman from all liability. This contradiction is not accidental; it reflects a legislative choice to maximize the rhetorical and legal protection of fetal life in contexts involving third parties (homicide, assault) while limiting that same protection when it would conflict with the pregnant woman's health or liberty. Whether this patchwork would survive a constitutional challenge under a fully realized fetal-personhood regime—or whether it contains the seeds of its own expansion—is an unresolved question."},"telehealth_and_interstate":{"telehealth_prescribing":{"title":"Telehealth for abortion: prohibited","summary":"Tennessee law explicitly prohibits prescribing or providing abortion medication via telemedicine; the informed-consent and waiting-period requirements also mandate in-person physician encounters.","description":"Abortion medication cannot be prescribed through telemedicine in Tennessee. The law says that abortion-inducing drugs cannot be provided through 'telemedicine' and must involve an in-person examination. The informed-consent requirements also need the physician to provide information 'orally and in person,' which cannot be done by video or phone. This means a Tennessee resident cannot receive a legal prescription for abortion medication through a telehealth appointment, whether the prescriber is in Tennessee or in another state.","verification":"semi_verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-63/chapter-6/part-11/section-63-6-1103"}]},"out_of_state_travel":{"title":"Out-of-state travel: lawful for adults; restricted for minors","summary":"Tennessee residents may travel out of state for lawful abortion care, but adults who transport a pregnant minor without parental consent face criminal penalties.","description":"It is legal for an adult Tennessee resident to travel to another state to obtain an abortion where it is lawful. Tennessee does not have a law that criminalizes crossing state lines for an abortion or that attempts to reach conduct occurring entirely in another state. However, an adult who helps a pregnant minor travel out of state for an abortion without parental consent can be charged with a crime and sued for money damages. And local governments in Tennessee are prohibited from spending public money on travel to other states for abortion.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-201"}]},"shield_or_hostile_laws":{"title":"No shield law; hostile to out-of-state abortion activity","summary":"Tennessee has no shield law protecting providers or patients from out-of-state investigations; its laws are hostile to cross-border abortion assistance for minors.","description":"Tennessee has not enacted a 'shield law' that would protect abortion providers or patients from legal actions originating in other states. This means that if another state (like Texas) attempted to investigate or prosecute a Tennessee provider for serving a patient from that state, Tennessee law would not block the out-of-state subpoena or prosecution. Additionally, Tennessee itself has laws that reach across state lines—the abortion-trafficking-of-minors law makes it a crime to help a minor obtain an abortion 'regardless of where the abortion is to be procured,' meaning it applies even if the abortion would occur in a state where it is legal. Tennessee is not a safe-haven jurisdiction for abortion access.","verification":"verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-201"}]}},"funding_and_insurance":{"medicaid":{"title":"Hyde-only; state funds prohibited","summary":"Tennessee Medicaid covers abortion only in cases of rape, incest, or life endangerment—the federal Hyde Amendment minimum; state funds cannot be used for any other abortion.","description":"Tennessee's Medicaid program (TennCare) covers abortion only in the three situations allowed by the federal Hyde Amendment: when the pregnancy is the result of rape, when it is the result of incest, or when the pregnant person's life is in danger. The state does not use its own funds to cover abortion beyond these narrow categories. Additionally, a separate state law prohibits any state funds from being spent to perform abortions, with the same Hyde-aligned exceptions. Because abortion is now banned in Tennessee except for medical emergencies, the practical scope of Medicaid coverage has narrowed further: TennCare would only cover an abortion that qualifies under the medical-emergency exception and fits one of the Hyde categories.","verification":"semi_verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-9/chapter-4/part-51/section-9-4-5116"}]},"private_insurance":{"title":"Exchange plans barred from abortion coverage","summary":"Health plans offered through Tennessee's ACA marketplace exchange are prohibited from covering abortion beyond the Hyde exceptions; other private plans may restrict or exclude coverage.","description":"Health insurance plans sold through Tennessee's Affordable Care Act marketplace cannot cover abortion services except in cases of rape, incest, or life endangerment. This restriction is imposed by state law. Employers and private insurers may also exclude or restrict abortion coverage in their plans, though Tennessee does not mandate this for all private plans. Because abortion is banned except in medical emergencies, coverage is largely moot, but the statutory exclusion would bar coverage even for lawful emergency abortions beyond Hyde categories.","verification":"semi_verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"FindLaw","href":"https://codes.findlaw.com/tn/title-56-insurance/tn-code-sect-56-26-134"}]},"exchange_plans":{"title":"Exchange plans: abortion coverage banned","summary":"ACA marketplace plans in Tennessee are statutorily prohibited from covering abortion services beyond the federal Hyde exceptions.","description":"No health plan sold on Tennessee's health insurance marketplace (Healthcare.gov) may cover abortion services that are prohibited under Tennessee law. Since Tennessee law prohibits abortion from fertilization with only a narrow medical-emergency exception, marketplace plans cannot cover abortion in most circumstances. This restriction is imposed by Tennessee statute, not by the federal Affordable Care Act.","verification":"semi_verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"FindLaw","href":"https://codes.findlaw.com/tn/title-56-insurance/tn-code-sect-56-26-134"}]},"state_funding_of_providers":{"title":"Defunds providers","summary":"Tennessee prohibits state funds from being used for abortion and has lost federal Title X funding due to its refusal to counsel on abortion options.","description":"Tennessee does not fund abortion providers. State law prohibits state funds from being spent on abortion with only narrow exceptions. In addition, Tennessee lost its $7 million federal Title X family-planning grant in 2023 because the state health department refused to comply with a Biden-era rule requiring Title X recipients to provide abortion counseling and referrals. Those funds were redirected to Planned Parenthood of Tennessee and North Mississippi instead. The state's posture is one of active defunding: state policy denies funding not only to abortion procedures themselves but also, through its policy choices, to organizations that provide or facilitate abortion access.","verification":"semi_verified","confidence":"high","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-9/chapter-4/part-51/section-9-4-5116"}]}}},"penalties":[{"actor":"Physician (performing unlawful abortion)","offense":"Criminal abortion (Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-15-213(b))","penalty":"Class C felony: 3-15 years imprisonment, fine up to $10,000; mandatory reporting to Board of Medical Examiners within 7 days; license suspension or revocation","verification":"verified","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-213"},{"name":"Tennessee Code","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-40/chapter-35/part-1/section-40-35-111"}]},{"actor":"Physician (violating informed consent/waiting period)","offense":"Intentional or knowing violation of Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-15-202(a)-(d), (f)(2)","penalty":"Class E felony: 1-6 years imprisonment, fine up to $3,000; license suspension or revocation","verification":"verified","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-202"}]},{"actor":"Physician (consent form / records violation)","offense":"Intentional, knowing, or reckless violation of Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-15-202(e), (f)(3)","penalty":"Class A misdemeanor: up to 11 months 29 days imprisonment, fine up to $2,500; license suspension or revocation","verification":"verified","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-202"}]},{"actor":"Any person (providing abortion-inducing drug unlawfully)","offense":"Violation of Tenn. Code Ann. § 63-6-1103 (mailing, telemedicine, delivery of abortion-inducing drug)","penalty":"Civil penalty up to $50,000 per violation; professional license discipline","verification":"semi_verified","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-63/chapter-6/part-11/section-63-6-1106"}]},{"actor":"Adult (abortion trafficking of minor)","offense":"Abortion trafficking of a minor (Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-15-201)","penalty":"Class A misdemeanor: mandatory imprisonment of 11 months and 29 days; civil liability for wrongful death of unborn child including economic, noneconomic, and punitive damages plus attorney fees","verification":"verified","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-201"}]},{"actor":"Any person (impersonating parent/guardian for minor's abortion)","offense":"Impersonating parent or legal guardian to circumvent parental consent (Tenn. Code Ann. § 37-10-303(a)(2))","penalty":"Class A misdemeanor: up to 11 months 29 days imprisonment, fine up to $2,500","verification":"verified","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-37/chapter-10/part-3/section-37-10-303"}]},{"actor":"Abortion provider (failure to retain parental consent documentation)","offense":"Failure to obtain or retain written parental consent documentation (Tenn. Code Ann. § 37-10-303(a)(1))","penalty":"Class B misdemeanor: fine only, unless failure due to bona fide imminent medical emergency","verification":"verified","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-37/chapter-10/part-3/section-37-10-303"}]}],"recent_changes":[{"date":"2022-06-24","event":"U.S. Supreme Court issues Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, overruling Roe v. Wade and Casey, triggering Tennessee's 2019 trigger law (Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-15-213).","sources":[{"name":"U.S. Supreme Court","href":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/21pdf/19-1392_6j37.pdf"}]},{"date":"2022-08-25","event":"Tennessee's trigger ban takes effect 30 days after the Tennessee Attorney General's notification to the Tennessee Code Commission, making abortion a Class C felony from fertilization.","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-213"}]},{"date":"2023-04-28","event":"Tennessee legislature amends the trigger ban to convert the medical-emergency provision from an affirmative defense into a true exception, a response to criticism that physicians had only a defense at trial rather than protection from prosecution.","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-213"}]},{"date":"2023-09-11","event":"Center for Reproductive Rights files Blackmon v. State of Tennessee in state chancery court, challenging the vagueness of the medical-emergency exception on behalf of women denied abortion care and physicians.","sources":[{"name":"Center for Reproductive Rights","href":"https://reproductiverights.org/cases/emergency-medical-exceptions-tennessee-abortion-ban"}]},{"date":"2024-07-01","event":"Tennessee's abortion-trafficking-of-minors law (Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-15-201) takes effect, making it a Class A misdemeanor for an adult to recruit, harbor, or transport a pregnant minor for an out-of-state abortion without parental consent, with civil wrongful-death liability.","sources":[{"name":"Justia","href":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-201"}]},{"date":"2024-10-17","event":"Tennessee chancery court issues temporary injunction in Blackmon v. State, blocking enforcement of the abortion ban for specific emergency conditions (PPROM, cervical dilation before viability, and fetal diagnoses causing maternal health complications).","sources":[{"name":"Center for Reproductive Rights","href":"https://reproductiverights.org/news/blackmon-v-tennessee-abortion-ban-temporarily-blocked"}]},{"date":"2025-04-01","event":"Tennessee legislature enacts Public Chapter 217 (SB1004/HB0990), adding statutory definitions of 'inevitable abortion' and 'serious risk of substantial and irreversible impairment of a major bodily function' to clarify the trigger ban's medical-emergency exception. Conditions listed include PPROM, inevitable abortion (cervical dilation before viability), severe preeclampsia, mirror syndrome, and infections causing uterine rupture or infertility.","sources":[{"name":"Tennessee Secretary of State","href":"https://publications.tnsosfiles.com/acts/114/pub/pc0217.pdf"}]},{"date":"2025-07-18","event":"Federal district court in Welty v. Dunaway permanently enjoins the 'recruitment' provision of Tennessee's abortion-trafficking statute on First Amendment grounds; the 'harboring' and 'transportation' provisions remain enforceable.","sources":[{"name":"FindLaw","href":"https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/us-dis-crt-m-d-ten-nas-div/117492623.html"}]}],"pending_changes":[{"name":"Phillips v. State (formerly Blackmon v. State)","type":"litigation","status":"Temporary injunction in effect since October 2024; trial delayed; ongoing","effect":"A final ruling could permanently clarify the scope of Tennessee's medical-emergency exception—either broadening it to encompass a wider range of pregnancy complications or narrowing it to exclude conditions currently covered by the temporary injunction. A ruling for the plaintiffs could declare portions of the ban unconstitutionally vague under the Tennessee Constitution.","sources":[{"name":"Center for Reproductive Rights","href":"https://reproductiverights.org/cases/emergency-medical-exceptions-tennessee-abortion-ban"}]},{"name":"Welty v. Dunaway (appeal of permanent injunction)","type":"litigation","status":"Permanent injunction entered July 18, 2025; state may appeal to Sixth Circuit","effect":"An appeal could reverse the permanent injunction of the recruitment provision, restoring criminal penalties for adults who talk to minors about out-of-state abortion options. Conversely, a broader ruling could also enjoin the harboring and transportation provisions.","sources":[{"name":"FindLaw","href":"https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/us-dis-crt-m-d-ten-nas-div/117492623.html"}]},{"name":"Proposed rape/incest exception bills (various)","type":"legislation","status":"Repeatedly introduced and defeated in the Tennessee General Assembly; no pending bill with realistic prospects as of mid-2025","effect":"If enacted, would create exceptions to the abortion ban for pregnancy resulting from rape or incest, likely with law-enforcement-reporting requirements. Currently, no such legislation has passed committee in the current session.","sources":[{"name":"Tennessee General Assembly","href":"https://wapp.capitol.tn.gov/apps/subjectindex/BillsBySubject.aspx?Primarysubject=0005&GA=113"}]}],"key_authorities":[{"name":"Trigger Ban / Criminal Abortion","citation":"Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-15-213","type":"statute","url":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-213","why":"The operative total ban: criminalizes abortion from fertilization as a Class C felony, with the sole medical-emergency exception, superseding all other Tennessee abortion restrictions."},{"name":"Tennessee Constitution Amendment 1 (2014)","citation":"Tenn. Const. art. I, § 36","type":"constitution","url":"https://law.justia.com/constitution/tennessee/article-i/section-36","why":"Expressly removes any state constitutional protection for abortion, overruling Planned Parenthood v. Sundquist (2000), and reserves abortion regulation to the legislature."},{"name":"Informed Consent and Waiting Period","citation":"Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-15-202","type":"statute","url":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-202","why":"Imposes 48-hour waiting period, state-scripted in-person counseling, ultrasound offer requirement, and physician-only informed consent, with felony penalties for violations."},{"name":"Abortion-Inducing Drug Risk Protocol Act","citation":"Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 63-6-1101 to 63-6-1108","type":"statute","url":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-63/chapter-6/part-11/section-63-6-1103","why":"Prohibits providing abortion medication by telemedicine or mail; requires in-person physician examination; imposes $50,000 civil penalty for violations."},{"name":"Abortion Trafficking of Minors","citation":"Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-15-201","type":"statute","url":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-201","why":"Criminalizes transporting or harboring a minor for out-of-state abortion without parental consent; creates civil wrongful-death liability; recruitment provision permanently enjoined."},{"name":"Parental Consent for Minor's Abortion","citation":"Tenn. Code Ann. § 37-10-303","type":"statute","url":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-37/chapter-10/part-3/section-37-10-303","why":"Requires written consent of one parent/guardian for a minor's abortion; provides for judicial bypass via juvenile court with 48-hour ruling deadline."},{"name":"Fetal Homicide / Fetus as Victim","citation":"Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-107","type":"statute","url":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-13/part-1/section-39-13-107","why":"Defines fetus 'at any stage of gestation in utero' as a victim for homicide and assault, with express exemption for the pregnant woman and lawful medical procedures."},{"name":"Public and Insurance Funding Restrictions","citation":"Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 9-4-5116, 56-26-134","type":"statute","url":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-9/chapter-4/part-51/section-9-4-5116","why":"Prohibits state funding of abortion beyond Hyde exceptions and bans exchange-plan abortion coverage."},{"name":"2025 Emergency Exception Clarification","citation":"2025 Tenn. Pub. Acts ch. 217","type":"statute","url":"https://publications.tnsosfiles.com/acts/114/pub/pc0217.pdf","why":"Codifies specific medical conditions that qualify under the trigger ban's health exception, including PPROM, inevitable abortion, severe preeclampsia, and mirror syndrome."},{"name":"Blackmon/Phillips v. State","citation":"No. 23-1196-IV(I) (Tenn. Ch. Oct. 17, 2024)","type":"case","url":"https://reproductiverights.org/news/blackmon-v-tennessee-abortion-ban-temporarily-blocked","why":"Temporary injunction identifying specific medical conditions within the ban's exception; ongoing litigation seeking permanent clarification of the medical-emergency scope."},{"name":"Welty v. Dunaway","citation":"No. 3:24-CV-00768 (M.D. Tenn. Jul. 18, 2025)","type":"case","url":"https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/us-dis-crt-m-d-ten-nas-div/117492623.html","why":"Permanently enjoined the 'recruitment' provision of the abortion-trafficking statute as an unconstitutional content-based speech restriction under the First Amendment."},{"name":"Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization","citation":"597 U.S. 215 (2022)","type":"case","url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/21pdf/19-1392_6j37.pdf","why":"Overruled Roe v. Wade, triggering Tennessee's 2019 trigger ban and returning authority over abortion regulation to the states."},{"name":"Partial-Birth Abortion Ban","citation":"Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-15-209","type":"statute","url":"https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-209","why":"Separately bans intact D&E/D&X procedures as a Class C felony, with a life-endangerment exception and exemption for the pregnant woman."},{"name":"Local Government Abortion Travel Funding Ban","citation":"Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 5-9-115, 6-56-113, 7-3-106","type":"statute","url":"https://codes.findlaw.com/tn/title-7-consolidated-governments-and-local-governmental-functions-and-entities/tn-code-sect-7-3-106","why":"Prohibits counties and municipalities from spending public funds on out-of-state abortion travel."},{"name":"Cascading Gestational Limits (superseded)","citation":"Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-15-216","type":"statute","url":"https://codes.findlaw.com/tn/title-39-criminal-offenses/tn-code-sect-39-15-216","why":"Superseded by the trigger ban but remains on the books; would spring back if the trigger ban were enjoined, imposing cascading bans at 6, 8, 10, 12, 15, 18, 20, 21, 22, 23, and 24 weeks."}],"research_notes":{"overall_confidence":"high","editor_notes":"The 2025 legislative session amended the trigger ban's definitions via Public Chapter 217; ensure the codified version in the 2025 or 2026 Tennessee Code reflects these changes. The Blackmon/Phillips litigation is active and its final resolution could materially alter the analysis of the medical-emergency exception. The Welty v. Dunaway permanent injunction may be appealed to the Sixth Circuit. The Tennessee Code is subject to annual supplementation; re-verify all statutory citations against the most current edition before publication.","gaps":["The full text of Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 1130-01-.21(3) (physician assistant prohibition for medication abortion) was not directly confirmed at the regulatory URL; this should be verified against the current official compilation.","The precise interaction between the trigger ban's emergency exception and the informed-consent statute's separate emergency exception has not been authoritatively resolved by a Tennessee appellate court; the Blackmon/Phillips litigation addresses this partially but a final ruling is pending.","Whether the FDA's regulation of mifepristone preempts Tennessee's prohibition on mailing abortion pills has not been litigated in this jurisdiction and remains an unresolved question of federal preemption.","The practical enforcement of the abortion-trafficking statute against adults who help adults (as opposed to minors) travel out of state has not been tested, and the accomplice-liability analysis remains theoretical.","No reported prosecutions of pregnant women or self-managed abortion have occurred in Tennessee, confirming the statutory exemption's practical effect, but data on law-enforcement interactions is limited.","The extent to which out-of-state shield-law protections for telemedicine prescribers who mail pills into Tennessee can effectively insulate those prescribers from Tennessee enforcement actions has not been tested in court."]}}