Supreme Court abortion ruling updates: WH warns of ‘nightmare scenarios’

Vice President Kamala Harris condemned the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, calling it the first time in history that a constitutional right was taken away from Americans. Harris said the decision takes away the right to privacy.

"For nearly 50 years we have talked about what Roe v. Wade protects. Today, as of right now, as of this minute, we can only talk about what Roe v. Wade protected. Past tense. This is a health care crisis," Harris said while delivering remarks in Plainfield, Illinois.

Harris said the expansion of freedom is not inevitable, encouraging Americans to vote in this year's midterm elections, saying "this is not over."

"Millions of women in America will go to bed tonight without access to the health care and reproductive care that they had this morning -- without access to the same health care or reproductive health care that their mothers and grandmothers had for 50 years," Harris said.

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Abortion ruling a ‘health care crisis,’ VP Harris says

“This is the first time in the history of our nation that a constitutional right has been taken from the people of America,” Harris said.

ABCNews.com

Senior White House officials held a Zoom meeting Friday afternoon seeking to rally abortion rights organizers, advocates and other leaders regarding what one official called the Supreme Court’s “devastating” decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

While the officials didn’t announce anything new in terms of actions the Biden administration may take, they pledged to work with the advocates to ensure women’s reproductive rights across the country.

“Although we're here on a devastating day, I think, you know, I think we will all meet the moment,” Emmy Ruiz, the White House’s director of political strategy and outreach, said.

The officials drew attention to Attorney General Merrick Garland vowing to protect women’s ability to travel to other states for reproductive health care and to President Joe Biden directing the Department of Health and Human Services to ensure access to abortion medications.

“We are in this together,” White House counsel Dana Remus said. “We have a long road ahead. Lots of work to do, but I am optimistic that together we can make progress.”

-ABC News' Ben Gittleson

Leading health care providers in reproductive and women's health condemned the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, warning that it affects patient safety and infringes on patient privacy.

The American Society for Training and Development released a statement that the decision "removes an essential civil liberty."

"Decisions about healthcare, particularly reproductive healthcare, should be made by patients and physicians, not by interest groups, religious organizations, politicians, pundits, or Supreme Court Justices," said Dr. Marcelle Cedars, the president of the American Society of Reproductive Medicine, a leader in reproductive medicine research.

The American Academy of Family Physicians said that the decision endangers the patient-physician relationship and potentially "criminalizes evidence-based medical care."

"Allowing each state to pass their own laws regarding access to reproductive health care, including abortion services and contraception, exacerbates inequities in the health care system," said Dr. Sterling Ransone, the president of the AAFP.

Also, the nation's largest union of nurses spoke out and called the policy "immoral, discriminatory, misogynist, violent [and] unacceptable," according to the statement released by National Nurses United.

The American Academy of Pediatrics said the consequences of the decision are "grave" for adolescent patients.

In addition, the largest medical speciality organization in the United States, the American College of Physicians, called the decision a "major setback" that erodes "the constitutional right to privacy."

"We strongly oppose medically unnecessary government restrictions on any health care services," said Dr. Ryan Mire, the president of ACP.

-Eric M. Strauss

The only abortion clinic in West Virginia announced it is no longer performing abortions as of Friday after the Supreme Court overruled Roe v. Wade.

In a statement on Facebook, the Women's Health Center of West Virginia said it is not performing the procedure anymore due to "criminal code from 1882 that criminalizes abortion for both the provider and patient with a felony prison sentence up [to] 10 years."

Abortion is still legal in West Virginia but a state constitutional amendment bars the protection of the right to an abortion. It's unclear if the 1882 law immediately goes into effect now that Roe has been overturned.

However, the clinic vowed that it "will not stop fighting for the abortion rights of every West Virginian."

It comes after Gov. Jim Justice praised the court's decision and said he would call a special session if a consultation with the Legislature determined clarification in the state's laws is needed.