Supreme Court strikes down Texas abortion clinic regulation

One thing that stands out about the Texas case is that it was very facts-based: Justices wrote extensively about the effect the law was having on clinic closures, the distance that women had to drive, and their overall access to abortion. She also noted the provisions in Texas that were struck down are similar to ones in Kansas that are part of a larger anti-abortion law now under injunction. Branstad said he understand the frustration, but he’s not in favor of a Texas exit. The rate is roughly 16.9 abortions per 1,000 women ages 15 to 44.

Whole Woman’s Health, lead plaintiff in the lawsuit considered by the Supreme Court, said it had no information about immediately reopening Texas clinics. Along with financial and logistical constraints, some shuttered clinics will need to be relicensed by the state. Justices John Roberts and Samuel Alito, two other conservative-leaning members of the Court, said that they favored more analysis, according to SCOTUSblog. First, the case would have come out the same way even if Justice Antonin Scalia were still alive or Judge Merrick Garland had been confirmed. His dissent Monday lasted about 10 minutes.

Wisconsin politicians and activist groups reacted to the Supreme Court decision as expected Monday, with liberal legislators and pro-choice groups applauding the decision and pro-life groups and legislators decrying it.

The case in question involved a challenge to a Texas law called HB2. Abortion clinics were required to maintain hospital-level standards for out-patient surgery, and doctors who performed abortions had to have admitting privileges at close by hospitals.

Writing for the majority, Justice Stephen Breyer wrote that the provisions in the Texas law “vastly increase the obstacles confronting women seeking abortions in Texas without providing any benefit to women’s health capable of withstanding any meaningful scrutiny”. Before Roe v. Wade whether or not abortion was legal depended on which state one lived in.

Former state Sen. Wendy Davis says the Supreme Court striking down Texas’ abortion law validates a 2013 filibuster she staged against it.

Davis tweeted: “Today made that day 3 yrs ago all worth it!” But her 2014 gubernatorial run ended in an overwhelming defeat by Republican Greg Abbott.

President Barack Obama issued a statement saying he was “pleased” with Monday’s ruling.

In essence, the court said a state may enact abortion regulations that do not pose an “undue burden” on pregnant women.

Hillary Clinton says the Supreme Court’s ruling to strike down Texas’ regulation of abortion clinics is “a victory for women in Texas and across America”. “Nationwide, childbirth is 14 times more likely than abortion to result in death, but Texas law allows a midwife to oversee childbirth in the patient’s own home”.

The Court found that in both cases, these restrictions put an “undue burden” on women seeking to terminate pregnancies without doing enough to protect women’s health.

“Today, women across the nation have had their constitutional rights vindicated”, declared Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights. It’s worth noting that Florida also considered a law this past session that would have required strict surgical center requirements on abortion clinics as well, but the bill ultimately didn’t pass.

Backers of the law argued that they were necessary to protect public health. 2 that said, in part, doctors performing abortions must have admitting privileges at hospitals within 30 miles of abortion clinics; that medication-induced abortions, ones that involve taking medication to end a pregnancy, can not be administered through video-conferencing; that all procedures, including “medication abortions”, must take place in ambulatory surgical centers – meaning clinics must upgrade their facilities to “hospital-grade” standards; and that abortions 20 weeks post-fertilization are banned except in certain circumstances.