US Supreme Court strikes down Texas abortion law, requirements for emergency access, safety standards

Justice Stephen Breyer wrote the majority opinion, which was joined in full by Kennedy, ruling that the Texas abortion law amounted to burdening women who seek abortions.

“There was no significant health-related problem that the new law helped to cure,” Breyer wrote. “We agree with the District Court that the surgical-center requirement, like the admitting-privileges requirement, provides few, if any, health benefits for women, poses a substantial obstacle to women seeking abortions, and constitutes an “undue burden” on their constitutional right to do so.”

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg joined Breyer’s opinion and wrote a brief concurring opinion, which focused on what she called women in “desperate circumstances.”

“When a State severely limits access to safe and legal procedures, women in desperate circumstances may resort to unlicensed rogue practitioners, faute de mieux, at great risk to their health and safety,” she wrote.

Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Steven H. Aden stated that “Abortionists shouldn’t be given a free pass to elude medical requirements that everyone else is required to follow. We are disappointed that the Supreme Court has ruled against a law so clearly designed to protect the health and safety of women in the wake of the Kermit Gosnell scandal. The law’s requirements were commonsense protections that ensured the maximum amount of protection for women, who deserve to have their well-being treated by government as a higher priority than the bottom line of abortionists. Any abortion facilities that don’t meet basic health and safety standards are not facilities that anyone should want to remain open.”

Gosnell’s trial began after a woman lost her life due to a botched abortion and the doctor’s limited emergency care access.

The immediate impact of the ruling means that the plaintiff in the case, Whole Women’s Health, will not have to close any more of its Texas clinics.

“Every day, Whole Woman’s Health treats our patients with compassion, respect and dignity,” said Amy Hagstrom Miller, the founder and CEO of the group. “And today the Supreme Court did the same. We’re thrilled that today justice was served and our clinics stay open.”