The Supreme Court will hear the challenge during its spring 2016 term, with a decision expected before the summer.
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“The abortion industry has always operated at the expense of women and families”.
Credit: Library of CongressThe legal controversy surrounding abortion is headed back to the U.S. Supreme Court. Two provisions in the law require that doctors at clinics have hospital admitting privileges within 30 miles of the clinics, and that clinics have facilities equal to those of an outpatient surgical center.
The Red River Women’s Clinic in Fargo filed a lawsuit challenging the law as a violation of the state’s constitution. The only clinic south of San Antonio, in McAllen, it added, would have “extremely limited capacity”. A police raid of his clinic had revealed horrific sanitary conditions, and the grand jury report claimed that if his clinic met the health standards of a surgery center, the life of one woman could have been saved.
This June, the Supreme Court voted 5-4 to grant an emergency appeal from clinics at risk of closing over the new laws, which were due to go into effect on 1 July.
The court defined those burdens as “unnecessary health regulations that have the objective or effect of presenting a substantial obstacle to a woman seeking an abortion”.
Backers of the regulations say they are common-sense measures meant to protect women. The case likely will bring into the race both the issue of abortion and the issue of the next president’s Supreme Court nominations. Our own investigations and research into Texas abortion facilities has shown uncovered abuses that show the need for them to be licensed, meet minimum standards, and for the abortion providers to hold local hospital privileges.
Northup said the effect of the law has been to increase wait times for women in the Dallas area from an average of five days to 20 days.
It’s also curious to name check Wendy Davis but fail to mention she was trounced in her gubernatorial bid, including among women voters, after campaigning hard on her message of being a champion of a woman’s right to have an abortion.
The Supreme Court ruled that if the court declined to hear the appeal, the stay granted would terminate automatically.
June 2015 – After considering the full merits of the challenge, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit reverses the district judge’s decision, finding the judge should have deferred to the legislature’s stated health and safety goals.
Abortion foes contend that a law is not an undue burden unless it takes a major toll on abortion access, while abortion rights advocates argue that a law is an undue burden if it serves no actual medical goal.
“The objective of this bill is to shut down clinics so that there’s fewer abortions taking place in Texas, and so women have less access to abortion care”, says Dr. Bhavik Kumar of the Whole Women’s Health Clinic in Ft.
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“Texas is an example of the kind of laws we’ve seen across the country where politicians try to take away the right to abortion under false claims they’re trying to protect women’s health”. But if the court rules in favor of the state, then more states would be able to follow suit. The clinic had closed in January after its only doctor with admitting privileges retired and his replacement was unable to meet the state’s requirements.
