A federal judge on Thursday temporarily halted parts of a law set to go into effect today that limits how the abortion pill can be administered.
The 14-day restraining order keeps prosecutors around the state from enforcing certain sections of the new law until a lawsuit filed Monday by Planned Parenthood of the Heartland can be resolved.
However, Judd Deere, spokesman for Attorney General Leslie Rutledge, said in an emailed statement that U.S. Judge Kristine Baker's ruling applies solely to the Planned Parenthood of the Heartland -- not to the only other abortion-providing health care center in the state, the Little Rock Family Planning Services.
"The Court has granted a short, 14-day restraining order to allow the parties time to more fully present evidence and argument in this case. The restraining order is limited to enforcement of portions of the Act against the specific plaintiffs in this case; therefore, the Act, including those portions, will still take effect tomorrow [Friday]," Deere said in the statement.
"Act 577 of 2015 was passed by the General Assembly and seeks to ensure medication abortions are conducted in a safe, responsible manner and with appropriate protections in the case of adverse effects. Attorney General Rutledge will fully defend this statute and believes it will ultimately be upheld."
Baker's ruling said Pulaski County Prosecuting Attorney Larry Jegley and Washington County Prosecuting Attorney Matt Durrett and "all those acting in concert with them" are temporarily barred from enforcing the requirements of the law against "PPH [Planned Parenthood of the Heartland], Dr. [Stephanie] Ho, and all those acting in concert with them."
The restraining order concerns the law's criteria for doctors and the drug protocol for the abortions.
Gov. Asa Hutchinson said in a statement that the ruling was on a preliminary motion and that he is "hopeful that when the case is considered in full that the Judge will support the law."
"The legislature passed HB 1394, sponsored by Rep. Charlene Fite earlier this year, which established the Abortion-Inducing Drugs Safety Act. On March 20, I signed it into law because I agreed with the legislature's intent to protect women by requiring physicians to follow procedures approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for these abortion drugs and to have the abortion clinic's doctor associate with a physician who has hospital privileges," Hutchinson said in the statement.
"This is a common sense approach for safety and I am hopeful the Court agrees that this is a proper purpose for the legislature to act. As made evident by their lawsuit, Planned Parenthood places a premium on the convenience of abortion providers over the health and welfare of women seeking these procedures," Hutchinson's statement said.
Baker said in her 24-page ruling that Planned Parenthood of the Heartland, at this stage of the suit, proved its point that allowing the law to go into effect "would result in an undue burden and would have the effect of placing a substantial obstacle in the path of a woman's right to choose."
The organization claimed in the lawsuit that medication abortions in the state would no longer be available if the law were allowed to go into effect.
"We are very pleased that Judge Baker has ruled on the side of Arkansas women," said Ashley Wright, spokesman for Planned Parenthood of the Heartland. "We remain confident in the merit of our case. We remain hopeful that the federal court will ultimately uphold a woman's ability to obtain a safe, legal medication abortion here in Arkansas."
Jerry Cox, president of the Arkansas Family Council, said he was not surprised by Baker's ruling.
"I'm very disappointed that a single judge would take it upon herself to overrule the will of the Arkansas Legislature," Cox said. "This was a law that was thoroughly debated and all aspects were covered."
Planned Parenthood provides only medication abortions in Arkansas and, if the law stands, it would be forced to refer its clients the Little Rock Family Planning Services for surgical abortions, an organization representative said previously.
Little Rock Family Planning Services said it would no longer offer the abortion pill and would operate solely as a surgical abortion provider because of the law, Planned Parenthood said in the lawsuit.
A message left for the the Little Rock Family Planning Services was not returned as of late Thursday.
Arkansas Act 577, among other things, requires that a doctor providing the medication abortion has to contract with another doctor who has admitting privileges at a hospital -- a stipulation Planned Parenthood of the Heartland said is "impossible to fulfill."
The organization said in court documents that it has been trying unsuccessfully since the law was passed to contract with a doctor to meet the requirements.
The physicians the organization reached out to "either refused to call us back or told us they could not contract with [Planned Parenthood] because of fear of stigma and harassment from being associated with an abortion provider; employers or partners did not want to be associated with an abortion provider; or because they do not support a woman's right to choose," the lawsuit read.
Baker said in the ruling that any benefit of a doctor with admitting privileges in regards to medication abortions is "incrementally small."
If patients experience complications from a chemical abortion, they are likely to go to the nearest hospital emergency room, "a hospital at which the contracted physician under this provision is not likely to have admitting privileges," Baker said in the ruling.
Furthermore, Baker concluded in the ruling that emergency room physicians are "well qualified to evaluate and treat most complications" that can arise from a medication abortion.
Planned Parenthood of the Heartland's emergency-care protocol "casts doubt as to any relative benefit" to the contract physician requirement, Baker said.
"Even if this Court accepts that this portion of the Act meets rational basis review, the Court is persuaded, for now, that PPH and Dr. Ho have a substantial likelihood of success on their argument that this portion of the Act as applied to PPH and Dr. Ho would result in an undue burden and would have the effect of placing a substantial obstacle in the path of a woman's right to choose to have an abortion of a nonviable fetus," Baker wrote in the ruling.
The second part of the law that Planned Parenthood took issue with is the new law's requirement that medication abortion providers must adhere strictly to guidelines set by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the drugs -- protocols which were based on trials completed before 1996 and involved fewer than 3,000 women.
Planned Parenthood of the Heartland said in the lawsuit that the drug's protocols are outdated, require higher doses, and are not in line with current standards of care.
Baker said in the ruling that some of the legislative findings cited by the state in support of this portion of the law "are inaccurate, incomplete, irrelevant, or outdated."
The final printed label requirements appear to be "inferior to the evidence-based regimen" used currently by Planned Parenthood and by "abortion providers around the country today," Baker said in the ruling.
"It appears this portion of the Act mandates care below the acceptable standard of care as defined elsewhere under Arkansas law, yet the Act subjects providers to criminal and civil liability for failing to abide by this act," Baker wrote.
The temporary restraining order will, by federal law, expire in 14 days at 4:45 p.m. on Jan. 14, "unless the Court, for good cause shown, extends it." A hearing is likely to be held within that time frame to determine whether the injunction will be made permanent.
Metro on 01/01/2016