Missouri Amendment 3 puts abortion rights back before voters

What voters will decide

Missouri voters will consider Amendment 3 in November, two years after voters approved reproductive health care protections. The measure asks voters whether those protections should be repealed.

Amendment 3 also addresses gender-transition procedures for minors. The measure would place restrictions on those procedures, putting that policy question before the same electorate deciding the future of the reproductive health care protections.

The proposal is an issue measure rather than a contest between candidates. Its outcome will directly determine whether the policies covered by the amendment change.

What Amendment 3 would change

If Amendment 3 passes, the reproductive health care protections approved by voters two years ago would be repealed. Restrictions on gender-transition procedures for minors would also be placed into state policy.

The ballot therefore brings together two health care subjects. One concerns protections that Missouri voters previously adopted; the other concerns procedures for people under 18. Voters will address both through Amendment 3 rather than through separate candidate races.

The November vote

The decision will be made through Missouri’s November ballot. Before voting, Missourians can review the official ballot wording to understand how a “yes” or “no” vote corresponds to the proposed policy changes.

The central choice is whether to replace the reproductive health care policy approved two years ago while adding restrictions involving minors. The vote will determine the status of both parts of Amendment 3.