Wisconsin Attorney General Brad Schimel is appealing a federal ruling striking down a law that requires admitting privileges at nearby hospitals for doctors performing abortions.
Schimel notified the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals that he would appeal a federal judge’s ruling in an effort to get the law reinstated.
In March, U.S. District Court Judge William Conley ruled the law was unconstitutional. Conley put the law on hold in 2013 as he considered the case but issued the ruling striking down the law last month.
Conley ruled the law was not created to enhance women’s health, but to create an unnecessary obstacle for women trying to get abortions in Wisconsin. He said this was an “improper purpose” of the law.
The law requires doctors to have admitting privileges at a hospital 30 miles within where they perform an abortion. Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin and Affiliated Medical Services sued over the law, saying abortion clinics would have to close if doctors were unable to get admitting privileges.
In an email to The Badger Herald, Nicole Safar, public policy director of Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin, said they are confident the Court of Appeals will uphold Conley’s analysis of the “unconstitutional law.”
“Regardless of what happens in the courts, Planned Parenthood will continue to be here for the patients who rely on us,” Safar said.
The law’s author, state Sen. Mary Lazich, R-New Berlin, called Conley’s decision “erroneous” in a statement last month.
“With his decision, Judge Conley, an Obama appointed federal judge, shows disregard for a women’s healthcare safety net,” Lazich said. “Under the guise of lack of access to abortion, this ruling puts women’s patient safety at risk. I refuse to believe the Constitution requires subpar healthcare for women so long as it is within an easy drive and prohibits reasonable requirements for continuity of care.”
Read Schimel’s notification below.
