Abhortion · State legal snapshot
Total ban, enforced. Tennessee prohibits abortion from fertilization with a single medical-emergency exception; the ban has been in effect since August 25, 2022, and is…
§ I · Gestational limit
│ Total ban from fertilization since August 25, 2022 · Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-15-213
§ II · Restriction inventory — 15 checked, 12 in force
✓Provider ban · all stagesIn force
◐2 in-person visitsIn force
◐Method ban · D&XIn force
◐Physician-only lawIn force
◐One-parent consentIn force
✓Telehealth prescribing banIn force
◐48-hour waiting periodIn force
●Spousal consent or noticeNone
✓Abortion trafficking lawIn force
◐Scripted counselingIn force
●Civil bounty (SB8-style)None
✓Private insurance restrictionIn force
◐Mandatory ultrasoundPerformed
✓Pill-mailing banIn force
●Self-managed abortion crimeNone
§ III · Access
Criminal exposure
Procedure
Coverage & interstate
Available now
Severely restricted
Pregnant person
Expressly exempt
Waiting period
48 hours
Medicaid
Hyde only
Medication · telehealth
Legal · telehealth barred
Self-managed
Not a crime
Compelled visits
2 in person
Private insurance
Restricted
Who may perform
Physicians only
Provider max penalty
Class C felony, 3-15 years…
Minors
One-parent consent
Shield state
No
Mailing pills
Banned
Fetal homicide law
Yes · abortion carved out
Judicial bypass
Available
Major pending change
Yes · see p. 2
✓ Abolition-aligned — forbids abortion or imposes liability◐ Partial — a hurdle, an enjoined law, or a carve-out● No restriction○ Unclear or not applicable
§ IV · Why it is banned — governing authorities
Trigger Ban / Criminal Abortion, Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-15-213 — The operative total ban: criminalizes abortion from fertilization as a Class C felony,…
2014 ■Tennessee Constitution Amendment 1 (2014), Tenn. Const. art. I, § 36 — Expressly removes any state constitutional protection for abortion, overruling Planned…
■Informed Consent and Waiting Period, Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-15-202 — Imposes 48-hour waiting period, state-scripted in-person counseling, ultrasound offer…
“A person who performs or attempts to perform an abortion commits the offense of criminal abortion. Criminal abortion is a Class C felony.”— Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-15-213(b)
Fetal personhood — how the contradiction is walled off
✓ Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-15-213(a)(4)
“'Unborn child' means an individual living member of the species, homo sapiens, throughout the entire embryonic and fetal stages of the unborn child from fertilization…”
'Unborn child' defined as individual from fertilization
→
● Exempt · pregnant woman
Expressly exempt from criminal liability
● Carved out · abortion
Abortion is not chargeable under the homicide statutes.
✓ Reached · third parties
Fetus is homicide victim 'at any stage of gestation in utero'
Tennessee's treatment of fetal personhood is internally contradictory in significant ways. On one hand, the criminal abortion code (Tenn. Code Ann. Wrongful death: Wrongful death claim for viable fetus recognized.
§ V · Criminal exposure by actor
●
Pregnant woman
Expressly exempt from criminal liability
✓
Physician
Class C felony, 3-15 years, license…
✓
Non-physician prescriber
Non-physician prescribers barred;…
✓
Helpers · funds
Helpers: criminal and civil exposure…
✓
Travel helpers
Travel assistance: criminalized for…
●
Civil bounty
No SB8-style civil bounty
✓ the actor faces criminal or civil exposure under state law · ● no exposure · ○ unclear or theoretical
Penalties on the books — top 5
§ VI · How the law got here ● court ■ statute ◆ executive / agency
U.S. Supreme Court issues Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, overruling Roe v.
25 Aug 2022■Tennessee's trigger ban takes effect 30 days after the Tennessee Attorney General's notification to the Tennessee…
28 Apr 2023■Tennessee legislature amends the trigger ban to convert the medical-emergency provision from an affirmative defense…
11 Sep 2023●Center for Reproductive Rights files Blackmon v.
1 Jul 2024■Tennessee's abortion-trafficking-of-minors law (Tenn. Code Ann.
17 Oct 2024●Tennessee chancery court issues temporary injunction in Blackmon v.
1 Apr 2025■Tennessee legislature enacts Public Chapter 217 (SB1004/HB0990), adding statutory definitions of 'inevitable…
18 Jul 2025●Federal district court in Welty v.
§ VII · Exceptions matrix
Named in law: ◐ the exception is written into the ban · ✓ no such exception · ● no ban for an exception to operate against. Verified (neutral): ✓ quoted text confirmed at source · ◐ semi-verified · ○ verify before publication · — not applicable.
§ VIII · Interstate & helpers
✓ No shield law
No shield law; hostile to out-of-state abortion activity
✓ Travel assistance criminalized
Out-of-state travel: lawful for adults; restricted for…
✓ Telehealth prescribing barred
Telehealth for abortion: prohibited
✓ Pill mailing banned
Mailing pills: prohibited
✓ Funding help exposed
Funding: local-government ban; private funding generally…
✓ Providing information
Information-sharing: First Amendment protected
Interstate postureTennessee has no shield law protecting providers or patients from out-of-state investigations; its laws are hostile to cross-border abortion assistance for minors.
§ IX · Who pays
Hyde-only; state funds prohibited
Life
Hyde · federal
Rape
Hyde · federal
Incest
Hyde · federal
Beyond Hyde
Not covered
Exchange plans barred from abortion coverage
Exchange plans: abortion coverage banned
✓Defunds providers
§ X · Pending changes status and effect as recorded — no forecast
Phillips v. State (formerly Blackmon v. State)Temporary injunction in effect since October 2024; trial delayed; ongoing
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…
LitigationWelty v. Dunaway (appeal of permanent injunction)Permanent injunction entered July 18, 2025; state may appeal to Sixth Circuit
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…
LegislationProposed rape/incest exception bills (various)Repeatedly introduced and defeated in the Tennessee General Assembly; no pending bill with realistic…
If enacted, would create exceptions to the abortion ban for pregnancy resulting from rape or incest, likely with law-enforcement-reporting requirements. Currently, no…
§ XI · Key authorities ● case ■ statute ◆ agency
■Trigger Ban / Criminal Abortion Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-15-213
■Tennessee Constitution Amendment 1 (2014) Tenn. Const. art. I, § 36
■Informed Consent and Waiting Period Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-15-202
■Abortion-Inducing Drug Risk Protocol Act Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 63-6-1101 to 63-6-1108
■Abortion Trafficking of Minors Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-15-201
■Parental Consent for Minor's Abortion Tenn. Code Ann. § 37-10-303
■Fetal Homicide / Fetus as Victim Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-107
■Public and Insurance Funding Restrictions Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 9-4-5116, 56-26-134
■2025 Emergency Exception Clarification 2025 Tenn. Pub. Acts ch. 217
●Blackmon/Phillips v. State No. 23-1196-IV(I) (Tenn. Ch. Oct. 17, 2024)
●Welty v. Dunaway No. 3:24-CV-00768 (M.D. Tenn. Jul. 18, 2025)
●Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization 597 U.S. 215 (2022)