The state can now enforce laws that will force all but seven abortion facilities in the state to close.
Darrell Byers / Reuters
A federal appeals court will allow Texas to enforce strict regulations that will force all but seven abortion facilities in the state to close until the court can determine if the law is constitutional, the Associated Press reported.
The regulations require abortion facilities to include operating rooms and hospital-style air filtration systems. Another portion of the law has already required doctors working at clinics to have admitting privileges at local hospitals.
Currently, only seven clinics in Houston, Austin, San Antonio and the Dallas-Fort Worth areas meet the requirements, which critics say effectively deny many women the right to an abortion in the second most populous state in the U.S.
The 2013 law aimed to protect women's health, said Gov. Rick Perry and other Texas conservatives. A U.S. District judge ruled in August that the law, which would require millions of dollars of upgrades at clinics, was actually about making access to abortions more difficult. Thursday's opinion by a panel of judges in New Orleans puts a hold on the earlier decision pending more court review.
According to the law's opponents, almost a million women will now live more than three hours away from an abortion clinic. It was briefly halted by a 13-hour filibuster by Democratic state Sen. Wendy Davis, who is now running for governor.
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from BuzzFeed - Breaking http://ift.tt/1r4xCGI
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