Court upholds Texas abortion law that could leave state with only seven clinics
The Guardian
Court upholds Texas abortion law that could leave state with only seven clinics
Federal appeals court overturns decision that temporarily blocked restrictive law requiring clinics to meet hospital-like standards, forcing closure of many
Abortion providers will ask the US supreme court to consider Texas’s severe anti-abortion powers after a federal appeals court on Tuesday upheld the most restrictive provisions of a state law that could leave the second largest state in the US with fewer than 10 abortion clinics.
A three-judge panel on the fifth US circuit court of appeals, one of the nation’s most conservative courts, found that Texas could require abortion clinics to meet hospital-level operating standards, which opponents say are too expensive for small providers and clinics. The state argued in a challenge brought by abortion providers that the law’s building and equipment regulations are meant to protect women’s health.
Opponents of the Republican-backed law, among the most restrictive in the US, say the decision could leave women across the vast expanse of Texas with access to just a handful of clinics, forcing them to travel more than 100 miles to seek an abortion.
“Not since before Roe v Wade [in 1973] has a law or court decision had the potential to devastate access to reproductive healthcare on such a sweeping scale,” said Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights, which challenged the law.
The Center for Reproductive Rights, along with the Texas women’s healthcare providers, said they plan to appeal the case to the nation’s highest court, arguing that the regulations may force all but seven clinics in Texas to close.
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http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/jun/09/texas-abortion-law-clinics-close
Isn't it nice to know that a low-income woan who lives hundreds of miles from a clinic and has no transportation still has her constitutional right of choice... What fucking bullshit!