Abortion rights advocates rally for delay of law that would close abortion clinics

SALT LAKE CITY — About 200 abortion rights advocates gathered outside of the Salt Lake City-County Building Wednesday to show support to a Utah judge's decision to grant a preliminary injunction to block a new law that would effectively ban abortion clinics.

Despite the injunction, those at the rally at Washington Square said they anticipate an ongoing fight on the issue and gathered to sign petitions.

Community groups such as the Planned Parenthood Association of Utah and ACLU of Utah were present throughout, as well as some elected officials.

"As legislators it is our responsibility to protect the health and well-being of all our constituents, regardless of who they are, who they love or their circumstances. This includes protecting access to abortion care, as long as it is our duty to stand up for the rights and well-being of all members of our community," said Rep. Angela Romero, D-Salt Lake City.

"We are at a critical point in fighting for reproductive rights and justice. The onslaught of legislation aimed at restricting access to abortion is an attack on our individual freedom and basic human rights. And make no mistake, these laws will have devastating consequences," continued Romero.

Dr. Emily Corrigan, an OBGYN practicing in Boise, noted that Idaho has some of the strictest abortion laws in the nation, banning the procedure at all stages of pregnancy. Idaho's abortion law allows the procedure to be performed in cases of rape, incest, or if the mother would die without one.

Idaho's abortion laws also include a penalty of two to five years in prison if convicted of "abortion trafficking," which is helping a minor access abortion across state lines, and the ability to file a civil lawsuit against doctors who perform abortions outside of the outlined exceptions, Corrigan said.

"Fear and confusion still abound across Idaho, resulting in patients (being) denied emergency health care. And those patients are paying the price when the rest of the world is moving forward with reproductive health care rights; Idaho and possibly Utah are moving backwards," Corrigan said. "How many Idaho and American women will have to die before we can all regain the right we had for 50 years? How many of them will have to pay the price?"

Corrigan also pointed to rising waitlists for women to access reproductive and maternal health care due to the growing scarcity of OBGYN physicians in the state.

Before the injunction was granted, HB467 was set to stop the licensing of new abortion clinics after May 2, and effectively ban legal abortions in clinics beginning in January 2024.

Planned Parenthood issued the request to Judge Andrew Stone in a 3rd District Court hearing last Friday to place an injunction on the law. The organization argued that the implementation of HB467 effectively equates to a ban, and often hospitals perform abortions only under certain circumstances.

Licensed clinics provide over 95% of abortions in Utah, and Planned Parenthood Association of Utah health centers are not presently licensed as hospitals, according to Planned Parenthood.

Groups and lawmakers who support the bill have argued the bill is intended to protect the unborn while allowing reasonable exemptions.

Bill sponsor Rep. Karianne Lisonbee, R-Clearfield, said during the legislative session that the bill still allows clinics like Planned Parenthood to perform other services such as cervical screenings.

"We in Utah have a long-standing tradition — since before statehood — of protecting the unborn by outlawing abortion. We have compassionate exemptions, and we have compassionate law and services for women who find themselves in a situation, and we as a state ought to support them in making the decision that they need to make. That's what this bill does, in a compassionate and thoughtful way," Lisonbee has said.

Ahead of Gov. Spencer Cox's signing of the bill, the Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America organization stated, "Planned Parenthood's days of profiting at the expense of unborn lives in Utah could be numbered."

"Abortion clinics are not medical facilities," said Adam Schwend, the group's western regional director. "Planned Parenthood and the rest of the abortion industry exist to generate a profit by taking lives of unborn children, rather than to care for patients. They generally do not have to abide by the same regulatory standards as health clinics, and this puts women at risk."

The preliminary injunction request is a part of the same request filed by Planned Parenthood in 2022 against the state's trigger law that bans abortions except under certain circumstances. The circumstances outlined in Utah's trigger law include rape, incest or serious risk of death to the mother. Stone issued an injunction to prevent that law from going into effect, and it is currently being briefed for consideration by the Utah Supreme Court.

Related topics