The Oklahoma Supreme Court put two laws on hold Tuesday that place restrictions on abortions in the state.
One law requires abortion providers have a physician with admitting privileges at a nearby hospital present when the procedure is performed, and would’ve forced the doctor who performs nearly half of the state’s abortions to shut down his practice.
Dr. Larry Burns says he applied for those privileges at 16 hospitals without success, but a district judge said Burns didn’t file those requests in a timely fashion.
In a second opinion Tuesday morning, the state’s high court said for now doctors don’t have to follow strict U.S. Food and Drug Administration protocol when prescribing drugs typically used for a non-surgical abortion in the first few weeks of pregnancy.
The Tulsa World’s Barbara Hoberock reports the New York-based Center for Reproductive Rights filed the lawsuit last week on behalf of Reproductive Services in Tulsa and the Oklahoma Coalition for Reproductive Rights. The law in question concerns the use of mifepristone, commonly known as RU-486, and misoprostol.
Reproductive Services administers the drugs according to an evidence-based protocol that is different from the process outlined in the FDA-approved label, the brief says. The off-label use allows for a lower dose of mifepristone resulting in a reduced rate of side effects, according to the brief. It also involves the self-administration of misoprostol, reducing the need for travel and allowing women to complete the process at home, the brief says. It allows for a medication abortion for up to nine weeks, two weeks longer than the FDA protocol allows, according to the brief.
Both laws went into effect Saturday, but the Supreme Court sent both challenges back to district court for litigation. The court did not express an opinion as to whether or not either law was valid. That process could take months.
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