The U.S. Supreme Court has told the State of Wisconsin that justices won't weigh in on Wisconsin's law, requiring doctors who perform abortions to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals.
A federal appeals court previously struck down the law, prompting the state attorney general to request the review by the high court.
Justices also refused to consider an appeal from Mississippi, regarding restrictions on abortion clinics there.
The action by the court comes in the wake of the justices' decision on Monday to strike down a similar law in Texas.
Wisconsin is among states poring over Monday's abortion ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court. It rejected a Texas law that required doctors who perform abortions to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals. Wisconsin has a similar law, so pro-choice and pro-life groups here were eager to learn its fate.
"Today's decision was a huge victory for women and families across the country," Tanya Atkinson says. She's the executive director of Planned Parenthood Advocates of Wisconsin.
Atkinson's organization, along with the ACLU, challenged Wisconsin's law. A federal appeals court struck it down. It determined admitting privileges would not advance women's health, and would present a substantial obstacle to women seeking abortions. The U.S. Supreme Court reached a similar conclusion in its ruling on the Texas law on Monday.
Larry Dupuis of the ACLU believes the courts understand the impact of such laws, even if the stated intent is to protect women. "It shut down half the clinics in Texas. It would have shut down two clinics here, which is close to half of the capacity in Wisconsin," he says.
Wisconsin never enforced its admitting privileges law. It has remained on hold pending court challenges.
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