On June 20th, the Center for Reproductive Rights, Planned Parenthood, and the ACLU of Virginia filed a complaint with the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia seeking to repeal several Virginia abortion laws which they feel are “unnecessary and onerous.”
In light of the United States Supreme Court’s recent decision in Whole Women’s Health v. Hellerstedt — which requires the benefits of an abortion restriction to outweigh the burdens — the plaintiffs believe they can roll back decades-worth of abortion restrictions.
There are five laws currently in place which the plaintiffs find particularly burdensome:
- A law which requires second trimester abortions to be performed in a hospital.
- A law requiring facilities which perform more than four abortions a month to be licensed and regulated as strictly as hospitals.
- A law which requires abortions to be performed by a licensed physician.
- A law which requires women seeking an abortion to undergo both an ultrasound and a 24-hour mandatory waiting period before having an abortion.
- A law which makes a violation of any of the aforementioned laws a felony.
It is ironic these organizations which purport to care about the health and safety of the mother are seeking to repeal laws which would provide greater safety to mothers undergoing abortion procedures.
Their desire to provide wider and quicker access to abortions raises the question: Do these abortion providers truly care about women, or do they only care about their profit margins?
