TAMPA, Fla. - Ending reproductive-health restrictions is beneficial for women and the economy, according to an online tool from the Institute for Women's Policy Research.

This year, more than 500 bills restricting or banning abortion have been introduced across 46 states, including Florida.

Alexis McGill Johnson, president and CEO for Planned Parenthood Federation of America, said the data show if all state-level abortion restrictions were eliminated, more than a half-million women would enter the workforce, and annual earnings for all women would increase by an average of more than $1,600 a year.

"We know at the national level, the state-level abortion restrictions cost $105 billion per year by reducing labor-force participation and earnings," Johnson reported.

The research showed if all abortion restrictions were lifted, the estimated earnings increase for working women in Florida would be more than $6 million.

On May 17th, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear arguments challenging a Mississippi law that bans most abortions after 15 weeks.

It's a case Johnson contended strikes at the heart of Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court ruling that made abortion legal.

"All of this is happening against the majority of public opinion," Johnson asserted. "In every single state - not just national public opinion, but literally every single state - a majority of Americans believe that Roe should be the law of the land."

She noted a ruling upholding the Mississippi law would put the reproductive rights of 25 million women at risk in states where abortions could be banned.

Johnson pointed out access to birth control has been responsible for one-third of women's wage gains since the 1960s. And with reproductive rights under threat, in so many states and the Supreme Court, making those connections will be critical.

"This new tool to give us data around making the economic case for abortion access, in a moment where access and the right are very much on the line," Johnson remarked. "It's just going to be so instrumental for our fight."

The Supreme Court will hear arguments in the Mississippi case in the new term that starts in October. A decision is likely by June of next year.

FRANKFORT, Ky. -- The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to issue a ruling related to the Texas six-week abortion ban this week, and hears arguments Dec. 1 in a Mississippi case experts say could challenge the 1973 decision in Roe v. Wade.

Tamara Weider, Kentucky state director for Planned Parenthood Alliance Advocates, said Kentuckians' already restricted access to abortion is at risk. She cites state lawmakers' passage earlier this year of a constitutional amendment making it easier to ban abortion in the state if Roe v. Wade is overturned.

"This 'no right to abortion' amendment does not have any exemptions for rape, for incest, for sexual assault or fetal anomaly, or even life of the mother," Weider pointed out.

Kentuckians will vote on the constitutional amendment next November. House Bill 91 would create a new section of Kentucky's Constitution stating the Commonwealth does not secure or protect a right to or funding of abortion. Alabama, Louisiana, Tennessee and West Virginia have enacted similar amendments.

Weider explained Kentucky law requires women be given counseling and wait 24-hours before an abortion. It also requires providers to perform an ultrasound and explain to the patient what it depicts. Weider said the Texas lawmakers' six-week abortion ban is a template for other states seeking to pass similar measures.

"We've heard from legislators in Frankfort," Weider noted. "They do intend to bring about some version of the Texas bill. What that looks like is yet to be determined because they haven't pre-filed anything."

Weider sees the Mississippi case as a pivotal moment for abortion access nationwide. 'Dobbs versus Jackson' involves a law which bans all abortions after 15 weeks, before fetal viability, which medical experts say occurs at 24 weeks of gestation. Weider noted a similar Kentucky law was struck down in 2019.

"I think that it's very safe to say that we are going to see, legislatively, a complete and utter attack on what's left of access," Weider projected.

In a recent poll by the Washington Post and ABC, 60% of Americans said they believe the Roe v. Wade decision should be upheld, and 27% believe the Supreme Court should overturn it. Three-quarters of respondents said abortion decisions should be left to women and their doctors.

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. -- States like South Dakota are being closely watched as the U.S. Supreme Court takes up abortion cases elsewhere in the country.

Because of so-called "trigger laws," some are warning about the potential fallout.

This week, justices heard arguments about new abortion restrictions in Texas, and will soon look at a Mississippi case viewed as a direct threat to Roe v. Wade.

South Dakota is one of eleven states where abortions would be banned if the landmark federal law was overturned.

Kim Floren, co-founder of the Justice Empowerment Network, which helps people in the state access abortion care, said full restrictions would have a devastating effect.

"Abortion saves lives," Floren asserted. "And when people don't have access to it, then their quality of life suffers."

She pointed to circumstances when a pregnancy can threaten the mother's life. Floren also worries miscarriages will come under heavy scrutiny if bans are allowed.

Gov. Kristi Noem said she wants to ensure South Dakota remains a strong anti-abortion state. She signed a recent order restricting abortion medication, and has said she hopes for tighter laws in the future.

The Guttmacher Institute said South Dakota has only two facilities providing abortions.

Floren noted being in a state with a largely hostile view toward the procedure makes it harder for people to talk about critical moments in their reproductive health.

"If you drive through the state, there is an anti-abortion billboard in every single small town that you drive in," Floren observed.

Several states surrounding South Dakota also have trigger laws, and Floren added especially those living on the margins would have to go to great lengths to end a pregnancy.

Anti-abortion advocates say religious beliefs play a role in their decision, but Floren argued people can encounter a variety of unexpected situations, and in some pregnancies, she said emergencies make abortion a necessary option.

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Ohio again is jumping into the national debate over abortion access, with a new bill introduced that mirrors Texas' strict abortion ban.

House Bill 480 would ban all abortions in Ohio and allow any person to file a lawsuit against a medical provider who performs the procedure, or who "aids or abets" an abortion. Its backers are calling it the "2363 Act," claiming the number represents the number of abortions performed each day in the United States.

Kellie Copeland, executive director of NARAL Pro-Choice Ohio, said the so-called vigilante provision is copied directly from the Texas bill.

"This is such a sick game of ping-pong that Ohio and Texas are playing right now," she said. "The first six-week ban was introduced here, and Texas took it and added the vigilante piece. Now, Ohio is picking it back up and adding a total ban to it. It's incredibly dangerous."

Under HB 480, anyone who performs an abortion could face a fine of up to $10,000. Supporters argue that human life starts at the moment of fertilization and deserves protection. Opponents counter that it's an attack on women's rights and reproductive health.

Last week, a second hearing was heard in the Ohio Senate on an abortion trigger bill, Senate Bill 123, which would ban abortions if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade. Also, Mason became the second Ohio city to prohibit abortion within city limits.

Mason resident Nikki Foster said she believes it puts politics before a person's medical well-being and suspects it's also based on the Texas ban.

"We just don't believe, and we know, that this doesn't reflect our values," she said. "If the Texans can come by and plop this on a city council's desk, this can happen everywhere else, too."

The Supreme Court heard arguments this week regarding a challenge to the Texas law, and Copeland said it's difficult to know if local or state attempts to ban abortion will stick.

"With anti-abortion politicians falling all over themselves to one-up each other, and the state of the U.S. Supreme Court, we really don't know," she said, "but they're trying to strip everyone of their ability to accomplish abortion care, regardless of the reason or where they live."

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This story was produced in association with Media in the Public Interest and funded in part by the George Gund Foundation.