On June 20, the U.S. Supreme Court will decide whether to hear two abortion cases coming out of Oklahoma. The Oklahoma legislature has long been a leader in prolife legislation. The main opponent of abortion regulation and legislation in the state is a Tulsa abortion clinic, Reproductive Service, which is part of the larger abortion company, Nova Health Systems, based in Texas.
In the first case, Oklahoma has a law requiring a pre-abortion ultrasound that is displayed and explained to the woman prior to the performance of any abortion. This law has been challenged in a case captioned, Nova Health Systems, et al., v. Scott Pruitt, et all. The state trial court struck down the law, stating that it violated the state constitution by requiring a procedure prior to abortion that is not required before all other medical procedures. The Oklahoma Supreme Court affirmed on the basis that the ultrasound requirement violated the U.S. Supreme Court’s interpretation of the U.S. Constitution. The Oklahoma Attorney General has asked the US Supreme Court to hear the case, and reverse on the basis that ultrasound requirements are constitutional.
Oklahoma also has a law requiring any medical abortion utilize the protocol used when RU-486 was approved by the FDA. In Oklahoma Coalition for Reproductive Justice v. Cline, Nova Health Systems, along with the Oklahoma Coalition for Reproductive Justice, sued claiming that abortion providers should be able to administer RU-486 in other ways. The Oklahoma trial court created an implied right to abortion in the Oklahoma Constitution, and struck down the law as a burden on the newly created “right.” The Oklahoma Supreme Court affirmed the trial court on the basis that the law violated the U.S. Supreme Court’s interpretation of the U.S. Constitution. The Oklahoma Attorney General has asked the US Supreme Court to hear the case, and reverse.
Keep your fingers crossed that the Supreme Court takes the cases.