Find Court Cases > Poelker v. Doe

Poelker v. Doe

Case Date: 01/11/1977
Docket No: none

Facts of the Case 

A St. Louis policy prohibited non-therapeutic abortions in the city's two publicly run hospitals.

Question 

Did the policy violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment?

Argument Poelker v. Doe - Oral ArgumentFull Transcript Text  Download MP3Poelker v. Doe - Opinion Announcement  Download MP3 Conclusion  Decision: 6 votes for Poelker, 3 vote(s) against Legal provision: Equal Protection

No. The Court held that St. Louis could enact a "policy choice" to refuse to provide publicly financed hospitals for nontherapeutic abortions even though it provided facilities for childbirth. Relying on its reasoning in Maher v. Roe (1977), the Court distinguished between a state interfering with a protected activity and simply encouraging an alternative activity. Since the state did not deny women the right to have an abortion, the law was consistent with the Constitution.