Yahoo Movies Fact check: False claim that Supreme Court voted to ban condoms
The claim: The Supreme Court voted to ban condoms
Amid the fallout after the Supreme Court’s ruling overturning Roe v. Wade, the landmark decision that established the constitutional right to abortion in 1973, social media users have been speculating about what reproductive rights may be next to go.
A Sept. 18 Instagram post claims the nation's highest court has already made another significant move.
“Supreme Court just voted to ban condoms,” reads the post, which features an image of a condom. The post received more than 150 likes in one day.
But the claim is baseless.
The Supreme Court did not vote to ban condoms. The court is on recess until October, and none of its opinions from the previous term banned condoms.
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USA TODAY reached out to the user who shared the claim for comment.
The Supreme Court is on recess, did not ban condoms in previous term
The post claims the Supreme Court “just” voted to ban condoms. But the court has been on recess since June 30, according to a press release from the court. The court’s website says it will not begin a new term until the first week of October.
A Ballotpedia webpage of all the court’s opinions from the 2021-2022 term makes no mention of any decision that bans condoms. There is also nothing on the Supreme Court's website about such a ruling.
Although condoms are still accessible, Associate Justice Clarence Thomas said in his solo concurrence backing the court’s reversal of Roe vs. Wade that the court should reconsider earlier rulings like Griswold v. Connecticut, which barred states from banning contraceptives.
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Federal protection remains, but there are currently some limitations to accessing contraceptives in some states.
In six states, pharmacists can deny refilling birth control prescriptions for religious reasons, USA TODAY reported. Pharmacists in those states do not have to refer patients to an alternative provider. In another seven states, pharmacists may deny prescriptions but must refer patients to another pharmacy, USA TODAY also reported.
Our rating: False
Based on our research, we rate FALSE the claim that the Supreme Court voted to ban condoms. The court is in recess until a new term begins in October. No rulings from the court’s previous terms banned condoms.
Our fact-check sources:
USA TODAY, June 24, Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade, eliminating constitutional right to abortion
Ballotpedia, accessed Sept. 20, Supreme Court cases, October term 2021-2022
The Supreme Court of the United States, June 30, Press release: Statement from Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr.
The Supreme Court of the United States, accessed Sept. 20, The Court and Its Procedures
The New York Times, June 24, Thomas’s concurring opinion raises questions about what rights might be next.
USA TODAY, June 24, Clarence Thomas calls for Supreme Court to 'reconsider' gay marriage, contraception after Roe v. Wade falls
USA TODAY, July 29, What to do if CVS, the nation's largest pharmacy, refuses to fill your birth control
Legal Information Institute at Cornell Law School, accessed Sept. 20, Griswold v. Connecticut (1965)
USA TODAY, updated June 23, Who is Clarence Thomas? What to know about the Supreme Court's longest serving justice
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fact check: False claim that Supreme Court voted to ban condoms
