Federal court strikes down Wisconsin abortion law as unconstitutional

(The Christian Science Monitor) A U.S. appeals court has ruled that a Wisconsin law related to abortion providers is unconstitutional. The law in question requires doctors who provide abortions to have admitting privileges at a hospital within 30 miles of where they carry out the procedure.

Two abortion providers, Planned Parenthood and Affiliated Medical Services, sued the state, arguing that the law effectively restricted access to abortions in Wisconsin.

A panel of the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago in a two-to-one ruling concluded Monday the medical benefit to the requirement was “nonexistent” and “cannot be taken seriously as a measure to improve women’s health.”