7 months, 3 weeks ago

Judge strikes down a North Carolina abortion restriction but upholds another

RALEIGH, N.C. — A federal judge ruled Friday that a provision in North Carolina’s abortion laws requiring doctors to document the location of a pregnancy before prescribing abortion pills should be blocked permanently, affirming that it was too vague to be enforced reasonably. In light of the 2022 U.S. Supreme Court decision that overturned Roe v. Wade, she wrote, the lawmakers “need only offer rational speculation for its legislative decisions regulating abortion.” In this case, legislators contended the hospital requirement would protect maternal health by reducing risks to some women who could experience major complications after 12 weeks, Eagles said. Eagles on Friday affirmed blocking the clause in the abortion law requiring physicians to document the “intrauterine location of a pregnancy” before distributing medication abortion. North Carolina still remains a destination for many out-of-state women seeking abortions, as most states in the U.S. South have implemented laws banning abortion after six weeks of pregnancy — before many women know they are pregnant — or near-total bans.

Law Pregnancy Abortion North Carolina Laws 12 Weeks Requirement Weeks Eagles judge north abortion law pregnancy requirement women restriction strikes carolina provision laws weeks eagles medication upholds

History of this topic

1 month ago

Georgia justices order new look at whether lawsuit challenging near-ban on abortion can proceed

Associated Press

ATLANTA — A lawsuit challenging Georgia’s near-ban on abortion is headed back to a trial court to decide if the people who want to overturn the law have legal standing to sue. Andrea Young, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Georgia, which represents the plaintiffs, said the ruling “has further delayed any possibility of justice for women …

1 month, 1 week ago

South Carolina Doctors Ask for Right to Follow Conscience and Perform Abortions

Slate

Sign up for the Slatest to get the most insightful analysis, criticism, and advice out there, delivered to your inbox daily. The plaintiffs first make what has become a familiar argument since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade: South Carolina’s abortion ban may have abortion exceptions, but no one knows what they mean. South Carolina lawmakers claim an interest …

2 months ago

What to know about abortion developments in the states and courts as Trump takes office

Associated Press

An incoming new president and state legislative sessions ramping up are likely to bring more changes to abortion policy across the U.S., which is still settling after the seismic shift in 2022 when the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and opened the door to state bans. The states argue that efforts to provide access to the pills “undermine …

2 months, 1 week ago

North Carolina governor rolls out further abortion protections ahead of next Trump term

Associated Press

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — North Carolina’s Democratic Gov. Josh Stein unveiled new measures on Thursday that extend state protections for certain health care providers and patients’ reproductive health data just a few days before President-elect Donald Trump takes office. State agencies also must review and revise how they store data related to a patient’s reproductive health to “maximize protections for individual …

2 months, 2 weeks ago

New Mexico is a go-to state for women seeking abortions. A new court ruling helps it stay that way

Associated Press

SANTA FE, N.M. — The New Mexico Supreme Court on Thursday struck down abortion restrictions by conservative cities and counties at the request of the state attorney general. Attorneys representing New Mexico’s Lea and Roosevelt counties and the cities of Hobbs and Clovis had argued in court that local abortion ordinances can’t be struck down under provisions within the “anti-vice” …

3 months ago

Supreme Court takes up South Carolina's effort to defund Planned Parenthood

NPR

Supreme Court takes up South Carolina's effort to defund Planned Parenthood toggle caption Kent Nishimura/Getty Images The Supreme Court on Wednesday said it will review South Carolina's effort to disqualify Planned Parenthood from providing non-abortion services to Medicaid patients. The court will restrict itself to a single question in the case: The justices agreed to take up the question of …

3 months, 1 week ago

Idaho’s strict abortion ban faces scrutiny in federal appeals court hearing

Associated Press

PASADENA, Calif. — A federal appeals court scrutinized the impact of Idaho’s strict abortion ban on emergency medical care on Tuesday, weighing whether the ban criminalizing abortions should be enforceable in life- and health-threatening situations. Circuit Court of Appeals panel of 11 judges to urgently lift the injunction preventing the state from enforcing its abortion ban in emergency room settings, …

4 months, 1 week ago

Women suing over Idaho’s abortion ban describe dangerous pregnancies, becoming ‘medical refugees’

Associated Press

BOISE, Idaho — Four women suing over Idaho’s strict abortion bans told a judge Tuesday how excitement over their pregnancies turned to grief and fear after they learned their fetuses were not likely to survive to birth — and how they had to leave the state to get abortions amid fears that pregnancy complications would put their own health in …

5 months ago

Tennessee judges say doctors can't be disciplined for providing emergency abortions

The Independent

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy A three-judge panel on Thursday …

6 months, 1 week ago

North Dakota judge strikes down the state’s abortion ban

LA Times

A state judge struck down North Dakota’s ban on abortion Thursday, saying that the state constitution creates a fundamental right to access abortion before a fetus is viable. The judge acknowledged in his ruling that in the past, the North Dakota courts had relied on federal court precedents on abortion, but said those state precedents had been “upended” by the …

6 months, 2 weeks ago

Alaska law saying only doctors can provide abortions is unconstitutional, judge rules

Associated Press

JUNEAU, Alaska — An Alaska judge struck down Wednesday a decades-old state law that restricted who could perform abortions in the state. Alaska Superior Court Judge Josie Garton in 2021 granted the group’s request to allow advanced practice clinicians to provide medication abortion pending her decision in the underlying case. Planned Parenthood in its lawsuit argued there was no medical …

8 months, 3 weeks ago

Supreme Court dismisses Idaho abortion challenge, allowing doctors to perform emergency abortions

Salon

On Thursday, The Supreme Court ruled that doctors are allowed to provide emergency abortions to stabilize a patient’s health and life, meaning Idaho’s near-total abortion ban does not take precedence over a federal law known as the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act The 6-3 opinion included three dissenting Justices Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch and Clarence Thomas, while three of …

8 months, 3 weeks ago

Another major Supreme Court abortion ruling mistakenly posted online: report

Raw Story

A Supreme Court opinion mistakenly posted Wednesday showed the justices are poised to allow abortions in medical emergencies in Idaho. The leaked decision shows the justices plan to reinstate a lower court ruling that said Idaho hospitals could continue performing emergency abortions to protect mothers. “The Court’s opinion in Moyle v. United States and Idaho v. United States will be …

8 months, 3 weeks ago

It’s been two years since Roe v Wade was overturned. Here’s how far we’ve gone back

The Independent

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors …

9 months, 1 week ago

Supreme Court upholds FDA’s approval of abortion pills for early pregnancies

LA Times

The Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed a conservative Christian group’s claim that the abortion medication used by more than 5 million American women is unsafe and should be withdrawn from the market. “The plaintiffs have sincere legal, moral, ideological, and policy objections to elective abortion and to FDA’s relaxed regulation of mifepristone,” Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh wrote for the unanimous …

9 months, 2 weeks ago

Federal judge blocks some rules on abortion pills in North Carolina

Associated Press

RALEIGH, N.C. — A federal judge has permanently blocked some efforts in North Carolina to restrict how abortion pills can be dispensed, saying they are unlawfully in conflict with the authority of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The injunction entered Monday by U.S. District Judge Catherine Eagles in Greensboro gives permanence to her April 30 ruling that some of …

10 months ago

Judge says South Carolina can enforce 6-week abortion ban amid dispute over when a heartbeat begins

Associated Press

COLUMBIA, S.C. — A state judge has ruled that South Carolina can continue to enforce a ban on nearly all abortions around six weeks after conception as an appeal continues on what exactly defines a heartbeat under the law. The law says abortions cannot be performed after an ultrasound can detect “cardiac activity, or the steady and repetitive rhythmic contraction …

10 months, 3 weeks ago

Some North Carolina abortion pill restrictions are unlawful, federal judge says

Associated Press

RALEIGH, N.C. — Some of North Carolina government’s restrictions on dispensing abortion pills, such as requiring that doctors to prescribe and provide the drug to the patient in person, are unlawful because they frustrate the goal of Congress to use federal regulators to ensure the drug is distributed safely, a judge ruled on Tuesday. Yet some “statutory requirements of the …

10 months, 3 weeks ago

Supreme Court weighs whether hospitals obligated to provide emergency abortions

The Independent

Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy The Supreme Court will hear arguments on Wednesday in a …

11 months, 1 week ago

Arizona just revived an 1864 law criminalizing abortion. Here’s what’s happening in other states

Associated Press

Developments this week in Arizona underscored something that was already apparent about the 2024 elections in the United States: Abortion is going to loom large as an issue in state and federal elections — including the presidential race — and directly in the form of referendums in some states. An Arizona Supreme Court ruling that allows enforcement of a ban …

11 months, 1 week ago

The Shock Arizona Ruling Shows Why Trump’s Abortion ‘Middle Ground’ Is No Compromise

Huff Post

LOADING ERROR LOADING “Many states will be different, many will have a different number of weeks or some will have more conservative than others and that’s what they will be,” Trump said in a Monday statement. “Those networks that we’ve already worked really hard to create are now going to be the lifeline for the patients in Arizona who need …

11 months, 2 weeks ago

Tennessee women fight to block state’s abortion ban after being denied treatment for dangerous pregnancies

The Independent

Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} A …

11 months, 3 weeks ago

Supreme Court’s antiabortion conservatives could restrict abortion pills sent by mail, even in blue states

LA Times

The two-drug combination of mifepristone and misoprostol is used to end pregnancies, particularly in the early weeks. The Supreme Court’s antiabortion majority is set to consider whether to order a reversal in U.S. drug laws and restrict women from obtaining abortion medication at pharmacies or through the mail. Shortly after the Supreme Court repealed the right to abortion in the …

11 months, 3 weeks ago

Supreme Court to hear oral arguments Tuesday on abortion pill limits

Raw Story

WASHINGTON — The same U.S. Supreme Court that overturned the constitutional right to an abortion will hear oral arguments Tuesday over access to mifepristone, a pharmaceutical used in both medication abortion and miscarriage care. “While there are no comprehensive data on the number of self-managed medication abortions in the United States, evidence suggests they have been increasing in the past …

1 year ago

Nevada judge blocks state from limiting Medicaid coverage for abortions

The Independent

1 year ago

Federal courts move to restrict 'judge shopping,' which got attention after abortion medication case

The Independent

1 year ago

How states giving rights to fetuses could set up a national case on abortion

NPR

How states giving rights to fetuses could set up a national case on abortion Enlarge this image toggle caption Regan McCarthy Regan McCarthy TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Last month, when the Florida Supreme Court heard arguments for a proposed state constitutional amendment that would explicitly protect access to abortion, the discussion took a surprising turn for attendees like state House Minority …

1 year ago

Montana judge declares 3 laws restricting abortion unconstitutional, including a 20-week limit

Associated Press

— Three Montana laws restricting abortion access are unconstitutional, including a ban on abortions beyond 20 weeks of gestation, a state judge said in granting a motion for summary judgment filed by Planned Parenthood of Montana. But she said the organization’s efforts continue, noting Montana’s Legislature in 2023 passed another slate of bills seeking to limit abortion access. District Court …

1 year, 1 month ago

South Carolina woman seeks clarity on abortion ban in lawsuit backed by Planned Parenthood

Associated Press

COLUMBIA, S.C. — A South Carolina woman who traveled elsewhere for an abortion just days after reaching six weeks of pregnancy wants a court to affirm that the state’s ban on the procedure — when a “fetal heartbeat” can be detected — should not take effect until later in a pregnancy. In a lawsuit filed in state circuit court Monday, …

1 year, 2 months ago

North Dakota judge won’t block part of abortion law doctors say puts them at risk of prosecution

Associated Press

BISMARCK, N.D. — A North Dakota judge ruled Tuesday that he won’t block a part of a state law that doctors say puts them at risk of prosecution if they perform an abortion to save a patient’s life or health. The request asked the judge to bar the state from enforcing the law against physicians who use their “good-faith medical …

1 year, 2 months ago

Supreme Court allows Idaho to continue enforcing ban on emergency abortions

The Independent

1 year, 3 months ago

North Dakota judge to decide whether to temporarily block part of abortion law that limits doctors

Associated Press

BISMARCK, N.D. — A North Dakota judge said Wednesday he will decide soon whether to temporarily block a part of the state’s revised abortion laws so doctors can perform the procedure to save a patient’s life or health. The request for a preliminary injunction asks state District Court Judge Bruce Romanick to bar the state from enforcing the law against …

1 year, 3 months ago

A judge is considering Wyoming abortion laws, including the first explicit US ban on abortion pills

Associated Press

— Attorneys for both sides in a challenge to Wyoming abortion restrictions that include the nation’s first explicit ban on medication to end pregnancy urged a judge Thursday to uphold or strike down the new laws without holding a trial. Wyoming’s abortion pill ban specifically bars any exception for “psychological or emotional conditions.” “When the state says they are trying …

1 year, 3 months ago

US Supreme Court set to rule on abortion pill restrictions

Hindustan Times

The Supreme Court agreed Wednesday to rule on restrictions imposed by a lower court on a widely used abortion pill in the latest skirmish in the battle over reproductive rights in the United States. The lower court ruling imposing restrictions on the use of the abortion drug mifepristone has been on hold pending a decision by the conservative-dominated Supreme Court …

1 year, 3 months ago

Supreme Court agrees to rule on FDA’s approval of abortion pills sent by mail

LA Times

Boxes of the drug mifepristone sit on a shelf at the West Alabama Women’s Center in Tuscaloosa, Ala., in March 2022. “Telehealth for medication abortion is safe and effective and helps people overcome barriers to care, whether it be long travel distances or getting time off from work or school.” It’s not clear, however, whether a Supreme Court ruling upholding …

1 year, 4 months ago

Physicians, clinic ask judge to block enforcement of part of a North Dakota abortion law

Associated Press

BISMARCK, N.D. — Physicians and the former, sole abortion provider in North Dakota on Tuesday asked a judge to block enforcement of part of a revised law that bans most abortions, saying a provision that allows the procedure to protect a woman’s health is too vague. North Dakota outlaws all abortions, except in cases where women could face death or …

1 year, 4 months ago

Kansas to appeal ruling blocking abortion rules, including a medication restriction

The Independent

1 year, 4 months ago

Doctors could revive bid to block Arizona ban on abortions performed due to genetic abnormality

Associated Press

PHOENIX — A federal appeals court has agreed to give abortion rights advocates a chance to revive their bid to block an Arizona law that makes it a felony for doctors to perform abortions on patients seeking the procedure solely because of a fetal genetic abnormality, such as Down syndrome. Erin Hawley, vice president of the Center for Life and …

1 year, 4 months ago

Doctors could revive bid to block Arizona ban on abortions performed due to genetic abnormality

The Independent

1 year, 5 months ago

Judge blocks 2 provisions in North Carolina’s new abortion law; 12-week near-ban remains in place

Associated Press

RALEIGH, N.C. — A federal judge on Saturday blocked two portions of North Carolina’s new abortion law from taking effect while a lawsuit continues. U.S. District Judge Catherine Eagles issued an order halting enforcement of a provision to require surgical abortions that occur after 12 weeks — those for cases of rape and incest, for example — be performed only …

1 year, 6 months ago

West Virginia can restrict abortion pill sales, judge rules, despite FDA approval that it’s safe

Associated Press

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia can restrict the sale of the abortion pill, despite federal regulators’ approval of it as a safe and effective medication, a federal judge has ruled. “The Supreme Court has made it clear that regulating abortion is a matter of health and safety upon which States may appropriately exercise their police power,” Chambers wrote in a …

1 year, 6 months ago

Federal judge: West Virginia can restrict abortion pill sales

The Independent

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. “The Supreme Court has made it clear that regulating …

1 year, 6 months ago

South Carolina abortion ban with unclear ‘fetal heartbeat’ definition creates confusion, doctors say

Associated Press

COLUMBIA, S.C. — When the South Carolina Supreme Court upheld a ban on most abortions this week, the majority wrote that they were leaving “for another day” a decision on when, exactly, the “fetal heartbeat” limit begins during pregnancy. “This language creates uncertainty among medical providers who may be unsure they’re legally allowed to terminate a pregnancy.” South Carolina and …

1 year, 7 months ago

South Carolina’s new all-male highest court reverses course on abortion, upholding strict 6-week ban

Associated Press

COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina’s newly all-male Supreme Court reversed course on abortion Wednesday, upholding a law banning most such procedures except in the earliest weeks of pregnancy. The continued erosion of legal abortion access across the U.S. South comes after Republican state lawmakers replaced the lone woman on the court, Justice Kaye Hearn, who reached the state’s mandatory retirement …

1 year, 8 months ago

Federal Judge Blocks Certain Provisions In North Carolina Abortion Ban

Huff Post

LOADING ERROR LOADING A federal judge in North Carolina temporarily blocked certain provisions of the state’s 12-week abortion ban on Friday, just one day before the sweeping law was set to go into effect. Language in the bill also made it unclear whether medical providers would be prohibited from providing medication abortions for patients at 10 weeks or after the …

1 year, 8 months ago

Judge allows nearly all of North Carolina’s revised 12-week abortion law to take effect

Associated Press

RALEIGH, N.C. — A federal judge ruled on Friday that nearly all of North Carolina’s revised 12-week abortion law scheduled to begin this weekend can take effect, while temporarily blocking one rule that doctors feared could expose them to criminal penalties. Although a strong abortion-rights supporter, Cooper said it was important to clarify the rules because the original measure was …

1 year, 8 months ago

North Carolina governor signs law clearing up several aspects of impending abortion law

Associated Press

RALEIGH, N.C. — Last-minute revisions to North Carolina’s new abortion restrictions that take effect this weekend were signed into law on Thursday by Gov. Cooper vehemently opposed the underlying abortion law, which creates a ban on most abortions after 12 weeks of pregnancy, replacing the current ban on most abortions after 20 weeks. While the clean-up bill was “important to …

1 year, 8 months ago

Judge considering blocking parts of North Carolina abortion law won’t halt broader 12-week ban

Associated Press

GREENSBORO, N.C. — A federal judge said Wednesday that she won’t temporarily block most of a newly revised abortion law from taking effect this weekend in North Carolina, including a near-ban on the procedure after 12 weeks of pregnancy. The 12-week ban, which was approved in the spring by North Carolina’s Republican-controlled General Assembly and includes new exceptions for rape, …

1 year, 8 months ago

Revisions to North Carolina abortion law that could scuttle lawsuit get final legislative OK

Associated Press

RALEIGH, N.C. — North Carolina’s Republican-controlled General Assembly finalized revisions Tuesday to upcoming abortion restrictions that GOP legislative leaders hope will derail pending litigation that seeks to block large portions of the law from taking effect this weekend. If the proposed amendments don’t become law before Saturday, however, the “need for a temporary restraining order would be unchanged,” Planned Parenthood …

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