The Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops responded to the U.S. Supreme Court's abortion-rights decision, saying it agreed with the ruling.

“The legacy of Roe and Casey has been the imposition of an abortion regime that made our nation one of the most liberal of Western democratic countries on abortion,” the bishops said in a release. “As a result, over 62 million children nationwide and 3,368,475 children in Florida were denied the opportunity to live outside the womb since 1973.” 

The Supreme Court on Friday announced its 6-3 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, giving state legislatures the power to determine the legality of abortion.

“The Constitution makes no reference to abortion, and no such right is implicitly protected by any constitutional provision, including the one on which the defenders of Roe and Casey now chiefly rely — the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment,” Justice Samuel Alito wrote in the Court’s majority opinion statement, quoted by CNBC. “It is time to heed the Constitution and return the issue of abortion to the people’s elected representatives.”

As of July 1, Floridians will be able to undergo an abortion procedure up to 15 weeks into pregnancy, with exceptions for cases in which the mother's health is at risk, Tallahasse.com reported recently. Florida previously allowed abortions until up to 24 weeks of pregnancy. 

The Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops emphasized the need to help expectant mothers.

“We remain committed to ministries of service that accompany expectant mothers facing difficult or unintended pregnancies,” the group said. "We strive to continue to build a society that empowers women so that mothers are truly supported throughout pregnancy and beyond.”

Catholic Charities is one of many organizations that offers support and resources for pregnant women, often for free or at a low cost. Catholic Charities offers counseling and guidance for mothers, helping them come up with plans for parenting or for putting their child up for adoption. The organization helps the mothers throughout and beyond the pregnancy.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) issued a statement in response to the ruling, noting that it would not have come about had it not been for countless hours of advocacy for the sanctity of life.

“Today’s decision is also the fruit of the prayers, sacrifices, and advocacy of countless ordinary Americans from every walk of life,” the conference said. “Over these long years, millions of our fellow citizens have worked together peacefully to educate and persuade their neighbors about the injustice of abortion, to offer care and counseling to women, and to work for alternatives to abortion, including adoption, foster care, and public policies that truly support families. We share their joy today and we are grateful to them. Their work for the cause of life reflects all that is good in our democracy, and the pro-life movement deserves to be numbered among the great movements for social change and civil rights in our nation’s history.”

Going forward, the bishops asked Americans to settle their differences over the issue peacefully, not with the violent acts that have been threatened since the decision was first leaked to the press.

“Now is the time to begin the work of building a post-Roe America,” the USCCB said. “It is a time for healing wounds and repairing social divisions; it is a time for reasoned reflection and civil dialogue, and for coming together to build a society and economy that supports marriages and families, and where every woman has the support and resources she needs to bring her child into this world in love.”

More than 63 million babies were aborted in the United States while Roe v. Wade was in effect, data from the Guttmacher Institute said.