Lawyers at Americans United for Life (AUL), which is the nation’s undisputed “legal architect of the pro-life movement”, says women are the big losers in yesterday’s Supreme Court decision to strike down common sense abortion regulations in the state of Texas.
Clarke Forsythe, AUL Acting President and Senior Counsel, addressed the 5-3 decision handed down by the Supreme Court yesterday in the Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt case in which the Court struck down two health and safety standards imposed on abortion clinics by the state of Texas.
“Women lost today as the Supreme Court sides with the abortion industry, putting profits over women’s health and safety by opposing life-saving regulations and medically endorsed standards of patient care. Sadly, the commonsense laws that protect women in real, full service healthcare centers won’t be in effect in Texas abortion clinics,” Forsythe said shortly after the decision was announced yesterday.
“But Americans United for Life will continue to fight – in legislatures and in the courts – to protect women from a dangerous and greedy abortion industry.”
The two laws which were struck down would have forced clinics to comply with the same health and safety standards as facilities performing other outpatient surgeries and would require individual abortion providers to maintain hospital-admitting privileges to facilitate the treatment of abortion complications.
“In striking down these commonsense requirements, the Supreme Court has essentially accepted the abortion industry’s argument that it should be allowed to keep its profits high and patient care standards low,” said Forsythe. “It inexplicably turned a blind eye to what it has repeatedly held since Roe v. Wade: states may regulate the provision of abortion to protect maternal health. This ruling endangers women nationwide as health and safety standards are at risk.”
For more than 15 years, AUL has led the nationwide effort to combat a dangerous abortion industry, advocating for meaningful and comprehensive regulation and oversight of abortion providers across the nation. Currently, 29 states regulate (to widely varying degrees) abortion facilities, and only 6 of these states require abortion clinics to meet the same health and safety standards as facilities performing other outpatient surgeries. Further, 15 states require individual abortion providers or abortion facilities to maintain either hospital admitting privileges or a transfer agreement with a third-party physician who maintains such privileges.
“Today’s abortion clinics are the true ‘back alleys’ of abortion mythology,” noted Denise Burke, Vice President of Legal Affairs at AUL. “They consistently operate in the ‘red light district’ of American medicine where the problem of substandard abortion providers is longstanding and pervasive. The fight against this public health crisis will continue, despite today’s ruling.”
Click here for factual information on the health risks of abortion for all women.
Click here to learn more about the Women’s Protection Project which is fighting for improved health and safety standards that protect women from dangerous abortion clinic conditions.
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