Utah Judge Strikes Law Banning Abortion Clinics

At the request of Planned Parenthood Association of Utah, District Court Judge Andrew Stone has blocked a new law that was intended to ban abortion clinics from going into effect on January 1, 2024.  (See House Bill 467)  The law would have allowed abortions up to 18 weeks of pregnancy to be performed in a hospital.  Notably, only 5% of the abortions performed in Utah are performed in the hospital.  According to Judge Stone, “The Clinic Ban places a greater burden on licensed abortion clinics by criminalizing abortions performed in such clinics, despite the unrebutted evidence that abortions performed in an outpatient clinic are equally as safe as those performed in a hospital.”  In essence, Judge Stone concluded that the legislature acted unreasonably and without justification, since there was no evidence that abortions performed in clinics were any less safe than abortions performed in hospitals.  See Judge Stone’s full decision.

As new developments arise, we will continue to update our Dobbs Decision Resource Center.  In the meantime, please contact one of the lawyers in Shipman’s Health Law practice group if you have questions about this ever-changing legal landscape.