Dark Cloud Over Abortion Providers’ High Court Victory: Damage Might Already Be Done
The Texas law, which took effect in 2013, shuttered many of the state's clinics, and the road to rebuilding won't be easy. Meanwhile, other states react to the ruling.
Houston Chronicle:
Despite Abortion Ruling, Damage Already Done, Supporters Say
Despite a sweeping legal victory on their side, abortion-rights supporters have an uphill effort as they seek to rebuild shattered networks while opponents work with allies in the Texas Legislature to limit the procedure in the 2017 session. (Cervantes and Zelinski, 6/28)
The Texas Tribune:
Texas Abortion Clinics That Have Closed Since 2013
Though the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday handed Texas abortion providers a major victory by striking down the state’s most stringent abortion restrictions, House Bill 2 leaves behind a trail of shuttered clinics. There were more than 40 abortion clinics open in Texas when lawmakers began pushing for the new restrictions. ... When the restrictions became law, clinics that couldn't meet those terms began closing their doors. By the time the high court agreed to take up the case, the number of abortion clinics in Texas had halved to 19. And there were no clinics open anywhere between San Antonio and El Paso. (Ura, Murphy, Daniel and Carbonell, 6/28)
Houston Chronicle:
Beaumont Abortion Clinic 'Definitely Has The Ability' To Reopen
The organization at the center of the U.S. Supreme Court decision striking down Texas' abortion clinic regulations said on Monday that it hasn't determined which cities will be first but it "definitely has the ability" to reopen its Beaumont facility.
Whole Woman's Health of Beaumont, which was the only abortion provider between Houston and Louisiana, closed in 2014 after the passage of two provisions pushed by the Republican-dominated Texas Legislature a year earlier. (Teitz and Liptak, 6/28)
Los Angeles Times:
Expect A State-By-State Rollback Of Abortion Restrictions, Advocates Say
Texas abortion clinics at risk of being closed by a restrictive state law will remain open, and some of those shuttered probably will be able to reopen in the wake of a Supreme Court ruling Monday that could block similar laws in other states across the so-called “abortion desert” of the South and Midwest. Supporters of abortion rights said they now expected a steady state-by-state rollback of laws that restrict the ability to get an abortion, erasing gains that opponents have notched in recent years. (Hennessy-Fiske, 6/28)
North Carolina Health News:
North Carolinians React To Supreme Court Abortion Ruling
Last year, the [North Carolina] legislature passed a bill requiring women to wait 72 hours before they can obtain an abortion. In addition, the Women and Children’s Protection Act requires physicians performing abortions after 16 weeks gestation to send their notes and copies of ultrasounds to the Department of Health and Human Services for review. (Hoban, 6/28)
Atlanta Journal Constitution:
How Many Abortions Were Done In Gwinnett County In 2014?
Even though Georgia doesn’t have the same restrictions as the Lone Star State did, abortion has been a hot button issue here. Georgia has 14 clinics that perform abortions, all of them in urban centers including metro Atlanta, Savannah, Columbus and Augusta. That does not include the unknown number of private physicians that provide terminations. Metro Atlanta has the greatest number of abortions each year, but how many per county? (Bentley, 6/28)