More Americans support regulating abortion facilities than oppose

A plurality of Americans support requiring abortion facilities to follow hospital-level safety regulations and abortionists to obtain admitting privileges, a new Reuters/Ipsos poll has found.

The poll found that 41 percent believe such laws are proper measures for women’s safety, while 35 percent consider them pretexts for restricting women’s ability to obtain abortions. 24 percent, however, were unsure, leaving room for either side of the abortion debate to win a clear majority.

These findings come following news that the US Supreme Court will hear arguments on the constitutionality of one such Texas law, with a decision expected to come down four to five months before the 2016 presidential election. According to the poll, respondents want the court to strike down the law by a razor-thin 33 to 32 percent (within a 1.9 percent margin of error), with 36 percent undecided.

On the general subject of abortion’s legality, the poll found 43 percent want abortion generally legal, 41 percent generally illegal, and 16 percent unsure. However, Live Action News has previously reported that according to Gallup’s polling, at least 54 percent of Americans have consistently supported banning all or most abortions for the past 20 years.