A Missouri judge gutted the state’s total abortion ban and its gestational-age bans, declaring them irreconcilable with Amendment 3 of the state’s new constitutional amendment.
Jackson County Circuit Court Judge Jerri Zhang also nullified statutory criminal penalties that targeted abortion providers in her June 18 decision.
Gestational-age bans included outlawing abortions at 8 weeks, 14 weeks, and 18 weeks or later.
Defendants included the State of Missouri and the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.
Plaintiffs include Comprehensive Health of Planned Parenthood Great Plains and Planned Parenthood Great Rivers-Missouri.
“For too long, politicians forced patients to leave the state for an evidence-based and trusted form of abortion care,” Comprehensive Health of Planned Parenthood Great Plains President and CEO Emily Wales said. “Now, that care is coming home and with it, we move closer to fulfilling the promise of reproductive freedom Missourians demanded.”
The two Planned Parenthood affiliates were represented by the ACLU of Missouri, the national ACLU, and the Planned Parenthood Federation of America.
In addition to ruling on gestational bans, the court was asked to determine whether some 40 different statutes and regulations conflicted with Amendment 3, which bars the state from prosecuting or penalizing anyone assisting another person in exercising their reproductive rights.
The state's mandatory 72-hour and 24-hour waiting periods are among the statutes that were struck down as unconstitutional delays.
Zhang upheld restrictions on the use of fully remote telehealth appointments.
“Evidence adduced at trial proved that in-person appointments were needed to confirm gestational age for purposes of determining whether medication abortion would be safe and appropriate, as mifepristone and misoprostol, the drugs used in medication abortion, are FDA-approved for use in early pregnancy only,” Zhang wrote.
In-person appointments also allow medical professionals to diagnose and rule out an ectopic pregnancy.
Zhang also left physician-only rules intact.
Plaintiffs had argued that keeping abortion restricted strictly to physicians unconstitutionally limited patient care.
“State Defendants argue the Same Physician requirement is necessary to establish continuity of care,” Zhang ruled. “Plaintiffs argue that this creates scheduling issues and is otherwise impractical. The Court notes these alleged scheduling issues occur in conjunction with the 72-hour waiting period. Therefore, absent the 72-hour waiting period, the conflict resolves itself.”