NEW ORLEANS — A federal judge in Louisiana has issued a new order blocking the state from enforcing a law that he says would keep most women from getting abortions.
Attorneys for the state immediately asked Judge John deGravelles to stay Wednesday’s order while they appeal it and his Jan. 26 finding that the law is unconstitutional.
The law requires doctors who perform abortions to be able to admit patients to a hospital within 30 miles. Supporters say that would protect women’s health. Opponents say it would make it impossible to get abortions.
DeGravelles said in January that of six doctors performing abortions in Louisiana, only two meet the requirement, and one of them has said he would quit.
The other doctor performed nearly 30 percent of all abortions in the state, de-Gravelles said. He said forcing the other doctors out of their clinics would therefore leave about 70 percent of the women who want abortions unable to get them.
Even if the second doctor who has admitting privileges continued to perform abortions, about 55 percent of the women who want the procedures would be unable to get them, deGravelles wrote.