In Louisiana, an abortion clinic anxiously waits for a U.S. Supreme Court ruling
Louisiana’s ‘trigger law’ could immediately ban abortion if Roe is overturned. Hope Medical Group for Women, an abortion services clinic in Shreveport, has filed a lawsuit challenging Louisiana’s abortion ban. With a waitlist of 400 people, every appointment at this abortion clinic in the Bible Belt is taken and every day is busy.
The Situation at Hope Medical Group for Women
On a Thursday morning in mid-June, every parking space in the Hope Medical Group for Women parking lot was claimed by a car with either a Louisiana or Texas license plate. A brown fence surrounding the abortion clinic provides some privacy, obscuring the faces of people going in and out of the building. The front desk and waiting room are behind thick security glass, and everyone has to be buzzed into the facility by a staff member to enter. The facility sees patients six days per week, with just Sundays off. In spite of that demand, Hope Medical Group could be just days from closing its doors.
The Impact of the Supreme Court Ruling
Louisiana will immediately outlaw abortion if the U.S. Supreme Court allows it to do so later this month. Justices are expected to overturn the historic Roe v. Wade opinion, leaving the door open for conservative states such as Louisiana to ban abortion for the first time since 1973. That decision would automatically shutter the state’s three abortion providers – Hope Medical Group in Shreveport and two other clinics in Baton Rouge and New Orleans.
Current Legislative Restrictions
Louisiana governors and lawmakers have ratcheted up restrictions on abortion clinics over the years. They have to meet more stringent building requirements than similar medical centers. Both a doctor and a nurse must be present for a surgical abortion and staff has to read a state-mandated script that directs patients to consider alternatives to abortion. In Louisiana, the state-mandated waiting period for most abortions also jumped in the middle of May from 24 hours to 72 hours. This means most people have to wait three days between their initial appointment at the clinic and when the abortion is administered.
Louisiana’s Trigger Law
Gov. John Bel Edwards this week signed into a law an updated version of Louisiana’s “trigger law” that is supposed to immediately ban abortion if the Supreme Court reverses Roe vs. Wade. Under the trigger law, abortion would only be legal if a pregnant woman’s life is in danger. The new statute, pushed by anti-abortion advocates, was intended to clarify and consolidate dozens of abortion restrictions passed over decades.
Summary of Clinic Operations and Regulations
| Metric | Details |
|---|---|
| Waitlist | 400 people |
| Wait Time | 72 hours between initial appointment and procedure |
| Operating Schedule | Six days per week, Sundays off |
| Provider Status | Three providers statewide currently (Shreveport, Baton Rouge, New Orleans) |
Perspectives on the Impending Decision
Clinic administrator Kathaleen Pittman said of the pending Supreme Court decision: “It’s never not in our minds. I tear up thinking of those women being denied access to care.” Meanwhile, Louisiana anti-abortion advocates are excited but cautious. Gene Mills, president of Louisiana Family Forum, said that if an abortion ban comes to Louisiana, his organization will pivot to addressing the needs of pregnant people in distress through religiously-run crisis pregnancy centers.