For Immediate Release: February 7, 2019
Contact: [email protected]
In response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to block a rogue ruling by the Fifth Circuit Court that violated precedent and was designed to close the doors of the abortion providers in the state of Louisiana, NARAL Pro-Choice America President Ilyse Hogue issued the following statement:
“Today’s decision maintains a critical lifeline for women in Louisiana, who already face some of the bleakest outlooks for reproductive freedom. The Supreme Court rightfully refused to uphold a brazen and unconstitutional attempt to ignore identical cases that are intended to shutter abortion clinics in the state, making Roe v. Wade obsolete.
“While this particular ruling thankfully falls on the right side of history, it illustrates a sobering reminder: the thread that women’s rights hang by is dangerously thin in so many places across the country. NARAL and our 2 million members across the country will continue to combat attempts by hostile state legislatures and courts to gut the protections of Roe v. Wade.”
The June Medical Services v. Gee ruling reversed a Louisiana law that would require any physician providing abortion services in Louisiana to have admitting privileges at a nearby hospital, despite having no medical justification for doing so. The Fifth Circuit, which includes five Trump appointees (four of which heard this request for a hearing), violated Supreme Court precedent and upheld the law in September.
In Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt, an identical case in Texas, the Supreme Court declared a law requiring physicians performing abortions to have admitting privileges at a local hospital to be unconstitutional.
In addition to June Medical Services v. Gee (which could still be heard by the Supreme Court), there are at least 20 cases in various stages of judicial review that could significantly gut the protections of Roe, as well as access to abortion and contraception, as soon as the Supreme Court takes them up. For more information, see NARAL’s state of play fact sheet.
NARAL Pro-Choice America and its network of state affiliates are dedicated to protecting and expanding reproductive freedom for all Americans. NARAL works to guarantee that every woman has the right to make personal decisions regarding the full range of reproductive choices, including preventing unintended pregnancy, bearing healthy children, and choosing legal abortion. In recognition of its work defending our constitutional right to choose, Fortune Magazine described NARAL as “one of the top 10 advocacy groups in America.”