Center for Reproductive Rights and ACLU on Texas Abortion Ruling

Center for Reproductive Rights: Court Decision Protects Abortion Access for Most Women in Texas, But Upholds Restrictions on Medication Abortion:

Ruling blocks provision that would have made safe, legal abortion non-existent for one in three Texas women

After a three day trial, a federal court today permanently struck down one provision of a recently enacted, deeply unpopular law—a measure that would have made safe and legal abortion services for one-third of women in Texas virtually impossible to access.

While U.S. District Court Judge Lee Yeakel blocked implementation of a requirement that all abortion providers obtain admitting privileges at a local hospital, today’s ruling has allowed another harmful measure to take effect on October 29—one that severely restricts the use of medication abortion, a safe and effective method to end an early pregnancy. . . .

ACLU Blog of Rights: Court to Texas: Abortion Law Serves No Valid Purpose, by Brigitte Amiri:

In a crucial victory for Texas women and families, a federal district court held unconstitutional a law requiring physicians who provide abortions to have admitting privileges at a local hospital.  The Texas court based its decision on evidence showing that the law would not protect women in any way, and would have a devastating effect on women in the state.  Indeed, the court expressly found that the law has “no rational relationship to improved patient care” and serves no “valid purpose.”  That is why leading medical experts, including the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the Texas Hospital Association, all opposed the law.

The importance of today’s ruling cannot be overstated. . . .