A DUBIOUS CLAIM TO FAME FOR MISSOURI. As Sarah Posner reported last month, a revision to Missouri's abortion law might put at least two out of the three clinics in the state in jeopardy if conservative lawmakers get their way. The new law puts anyone who provides abortion services – even first trimester and abortion pill providers – into the same regulatory category as outpatient surgical centers, and would force the clinics to make cost-prohibitive updates to their facilities.
As yesterday's Los Angeles Times explained:
The law, which a federal judge is to review today, would force the immediate closure of at least two of Missouri's three abortion clinics, plus a private medical practice near St. Louis run by a doctor who offers first-trimester terminations in his office. Those facilities would need extensive renovations to comply with the law; the requirements could include widening hallways, raising ceilings, installing locker rooms, rerouting plumbing, and creating surgical suites stocked with emergency resuscitation equipment, even when no surgery is performed on-site.
The federal judge issued a temporary injunction in August that has delayed the new rules going into effect, and yesterday there was a hearing to determine if the injunction will become permanent. The judge has set a Sept. 24 deadline for reaching a decision in the case.
The proposed changes come from conservative lawmakers under the guise of improving the conditions for women treated at the facilities, but they effectively shut down the facilities by imposing stringent regulations on the physical layout, staffing, and record-keeping of all facilities that performs five or more abortions a month. Republican Gov. Matt Blunt signed the legislation into law in a Baptist church in July, calling it "one of the strongest pieces of pro-life legislation in Missouri history."
While other states have tried to squeeze out abortion clinics that provide second- and third-trimester services using similar legislative actions, the Missouri case is the first of its sort. Abortion rights groups fear it will set a new precedent for ways to undermine women's choice, since Missouri has "long been regarded as a pioneer in developing antiabortion strategy," as the Times puts it. See more on Missouri's cutting edge anti-choice tactics here and here.
--Kate Sheppard
