Webster v. Reproductive Health Services

law case

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July 23, 2026

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Webster v. Reproductive Health Services was a significant U.S. Supreme Court case decided in 1989. The ruling upheld a Missouri law that imposed restrictions on abortion services. These restrictions included a ban on the use of public funds for abortions, a ban on abortions at public facilities, and a requirement for physicians to perform tests to determine fetal viability for pregnancies over 20 weeks.

The Supreme Court's decision in Webster did not overturn Roe v. Wade (1973), which established a woman's constitutional right to an abortion. However, it allowed states to enact more restrictive abortion laws, weakening the protections established by Roe. This ruling was a precursor to later cases that would further challenge and eventually overturn Roe v. Wade, such as Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization in 2022.123

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Sandra Day O’Connor
…from the conservative majority in Webster v. Reproductive Health Services (1989)—in which the Court upheld a Missouri law that prohibited public employees from performing or assisting in abortions not necessary to save a woman’s life and that required doctors to determine the viability of a fetus if it was at…
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…from the conservative majority in Webster v. Reproductive Health Services (1989)—in which the Court upheld a Missouri law that prohibited public employees from performing or assisting in abortions not necessary to save a woman’s life and that required doctors to determine the viability of a fetus if it was at…
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Antonin Scalia
Judicial style of Antonin Scalia
In Webster v. Reproductive Health Services (1989), for example, he admonished his fellow conservatives for failing to strike down Roe v. Wade (1973), in which the Supreme Court had established a woman’s right to obtain an abortion. In a dissenting opinion in Madsen v. Women’s Health…
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In Webster v. Reproductive Health Services (1989), for example, he admonished his fellow conservatives for failing to strike down Roe v. Wade (1973), in which the Supreme Court had established a woman’s right to obtain an abortion. In a dissenting opinion in Madsen v. Women’s Health…
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abortion
In rulings in 1989 (Webster v. Reproductive Health Services) and 1992 (Planned Parenthood v. Casey), a more conservative Supreme Court upheld the legality of new state restrictions on abortion, though it proved unwilling to overturn Roe v. Wade itself. In 2007 the Court also upheld a…
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In rulings in 1989 (Webster v. Reproductive Health Services) and 1992 (Planned Parenthood v. Casey), a more conservative Supreme Court upheld the legality of new state restrictions on abortion, though it proved unwilling to overturn Roe v. Wade itself. In 2007 the Court also upheld a…
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