Federal court strikes down Wisconsin abortion law

On Monday, the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Wisconsin’s law requiring abortion providers to get admitting privileges at nearby hospitals is “unconstitutional.” The case was brought to court in the form of a lawsuit from Planned Parenthood, which claimed the law restricted abortion freedom.

The Wisconsin law was intended to ensure quality healthcare for women. Judge David Manion, who was the lone dissenter in the court’s decision to overturn the law, claimed the law does indeed protect women’s health and doesn’t amount to an undue constitutional burden.

“The solution to the plaintiffs’ problems is that they find more qualified doctors, not that the state relax — or that we strike down as unconstitutional — precautions taken by the state to protect the health and safety of pregnant women who have chosen to end their pregnancies,” Manion wrote.

According to ABC News, the ruling does not put the question to rest. Nearly a dozen states have legal requirements currently in place similar to the Wisconsin law.  The issue may eventually be decided by the Supreme Court.