Federal judge OKs abortion ban, with one exception
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A federal judge ruled Friday that all but one measure included in the new abortion law could go into effect beginning July 1.
Driving the news: U.S. District Judge Catherine Eagles temporarily blocked a measure that requires abortion providers to document the "location of the pregnancy" in the body before performing the procedure.
Context: That measure, Planned Parenthood South Atlantic argued in a lawsuit against the state, makes it unclear whether providers are allowed to provide a medication abortion if it's too soon to tell whether or not the patient has an intrauterine pregnancy.
Between the lines: State lawmakers passed legislation last week fixing numerous other provisions Planned Parenthood named in the lawsuit, and Gov. Roy Cooper signed those changes into law less than a day before Eagles' ruling.
- One of those fixes clarifies that medication abortions are allowed in most cases through 12 weeks.
- Eagles blocked that measure from taking effect for 14 days as the lawsuit proceeds through normal legal channels, WRAL reported.
What they're saying: "The rushed abortion ban was so poorly written that it is causing real uncertainty for doctors and other health care providers," Cooper wrote in a statement.
- "This bill is important to clarify the rules and provide some certainty, however we will continue fighting on all fronts the Republican assault on women’s reproductive freedom."
Zoom out: The rest of the abortion law now in effect includes numerous measures that will also impact North Carolinians not seeking abortions:
- State employees and teachers who give birth are now guaranteed eight weeks of paid parental leave, and partners or adoptive parents will receive four weeks.
- Repeat, violent sex offenders could be subject to lifetime GPS monitoring.
- Foster care families will receive increased payments per child.
- Certified nurse midwives, who serve as primary care providers and manage low-risk pregnancies and births, would be granted the ability to practice independently without physician oversight, as numerous other states allow.