News
Featured Image

TALLAHASSEE, Florida, March 2, 2016 (LifeSiteNews) – Florida's 24-hour waiting period for abortion is now in effect after a court ruling on Friday, a move welcomed by pro-life supporters and condemned by the abortion industry.

Sign the petition to defund Planned Parenthood here!

The First District Court of Appeals reversed an injunction from a lower court blocking the waiting period and ruled against the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which had filed suit on behalf of a Gainesville abortionist, arguing that the waiting period “poses a real hardship to many Florida women.”

The three-judge panel ruled that the plaintiffs had failed to prove that the law would create irreparable harm or that the ACLU's lawsuit is likely to succeed.

According to the pro-abortion think-tank the Guttmacher Institute, of the 38 states requiring that pregnant mothers receive counseling before an abortion is performed, 27 of the states also require mothers to wait a specified amount of time, usually 24 hours, between the counseling and the abortion.

Florida's Republican governor, Rick Scott, signed the waiting period into law in June of last year, but Judge Charles Francis blocked it one day before it was set to take effect on July 1, according to a report from AllGov.com.

The Florida law has exceptions for rape, incest, domestic abuse, and human trafficking if the pregnant woman produces documentation of the fact, such as a police report or restraining order.

The law been challenged on the basis of a privacy clause in the Florida constitution not found in other states, the AllGov.com report said, and has been used to reverse other Florida pro-life laws.

The legislator who sponsored the waiting period law was happy with the court decision, saying it would be good for women's health.

“I'm absolutely ecstatic that the injunction has been lifted,” said Republican Rep. Jennifer Sullivan of Eustis. “This is a huge win for women's health and the ability for women to have a face to face consultation with the doctor before the procedure.”

Sullivan also expressed confidence in the law's staying power.

“This was written in such a way that I'm confident it will ultimately be found constitutional and today is one step closer toward that direction,” she said.

Planned Parenthood continues to oppose the law but said its Florida locations will comply with the waiting period.

“We support all efforts to protect women's access to medical care, including safe and legal abortion without delay,” stated Laura Goodhue, executive director of the Florida Alliance of Planned Parenthood Affiliates. “The state should support medically appropriate and scientifically based health care policies, not legislation introduced with the intention of shaming, coercing, or judging a woman.”

Priest for Life executive director and Silent No More Awareness Campaign co-founder Janet Morana said waiting periods are a good thing, and the precedent with them in other states has been positive, by having helped some mothers to rethink and change course from going through with an abortion.

“The pregnancy health centers will tell you that waiting periods do help women confide in them and seek them and see what their options are,” Morana said. “A waiting period is giving women more options and more choice, which is supposed to be what it's about, isn't it?”

Other pro-life groups also praised the court's ruling.

“Florida's law is a commonsense measure that simply gives women and teen girls one day to think about having a procedure that is potentially life-changing and fraught with risks,” said Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) Senior Counsel Steven Aden in a statement. “Basic health standards should not allow for 'drop-in abortions.' The court has done the right thing in allowing this good law to go into effect.”

“The new 24 hour waiting period, in effect in thirty states, follows normal elective medical practice guidelines which require a consultation before scheduling outpatient surgery,” Florida Right to Life said in a statement. “This bill cracks down on shoddy medical practices which run patients though abortion mills at a high rate to earn more profit.”

State Senator Anitere Flores commended the decision along with Florida Right to Life.

“One day to reflect upon the risks of abortion,” the Miami-Dade Republican said, “one day to view an image of the unborn child's ultrasound image, and one day to consult with friends, family, and faith are minimal, considering the effects that will remain for a lifetime beyond that irreversible decision.”