Abortion services are set to resume in Missouri after a judge blocked regulations that had restricted providers, following the approval of a measure enshrining abortion rights into the state’s constitution by voters in November. The ruling came after a Kansas City judge had previously allowed abortions to be legal in the state but maintained certain regulations in place. Planned Parenthood challenged the licensing law, arguing that it required unnecessary pelvic exams and included medically irrelevant size requirements for facilities. The judge ruled that the licensing requirement was discriminatory and did not treat services provided in abortion facilities the same as other forms of healthcare.
The amendment to the constitution did not legalize abortion outright, but required laws that had previously almost completely banned the procedure to be reconsidered by judges. Planned Parenthood and other advocates sued to overturn Missouri’s near-total abortion ban following the amendment. The Attorney General is currently fighting the lawsuit. Missouri is one of five states where voters approved ballot measures to enshrine abortion rights in their constitutions in 2024. The ruling to lift the restrictions is temporary pending the outcome of the lawsuit. Planned Parenthood and other clinic partners are preparing to start providing abortions again in the coming days. The constitutional amendment allows lawmakers to restrict abortion after viability with exceptions to protect the life or health of the pregnant person. Missouri is among the first states to implement a prohibition on most abortions following the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling overturning Roe v. Wade in 2022.
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