Part Of New Wisconsin Abortion Law On Hold

A federal judge in Madison has temporarily blocked a provision in a new state law that could limit the availability of abortions in the state.

Judge William Conley’s injunction blocks the provision in the law requiring doctors to have admitting privileges at a hospital no more than 30 miles from the clinic where the abortion was performed.

In his ruling, Conley says the law will almost certainly cause irreparable harm towomen who will not be able to haveabortions scheduled for this week. The law was signed by Gov. Scott Walker last week.Attorney Lester Pines represents Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin, which challenged the law last week. He says the injunction protects a woman’s right to an abortion.

“If the legislature has passed an unconstitutional law which restricts the ability to exercise their constitutionally protected right, that is an infringement of the Constitution and it has to be enjoined,” he says.”You can not put up barriers to people exercising those rights.Period.”

Judge Conley’s ruling puts a hold on the law that would have forced two abortion clinics to close this week and forced the cancelation of abortion appointments for dozens of women.

At a hearing Monday, attorneys for the state Department of Justice argued that similar laws are already in place in several states where judges have ruled that the hospital admission rights provision protects women’s health by ensuring that if complications occur during an abortion the doctor who performed it will be able to follow the woman into a hospital where she can be treated.

The state will expand on those arguments at full hearings on Planned Parenthood’s challenge to the law, scheduled for July 17.