Alabama Abortion Clinic Law Challenged by Planned Parenthood, ACLU
Ala., June 11 (Reuters) - Planned Parenthood and the American Civil Liberties Union filed a federal lawsuit on Tuesday challenging a new Alabama law that tightens restrictions on abortion clinics in the state.
The law, signed by Gov. Robert Bentley in April and set to take effect next month, requires every doctor who performs an abortion at a clinic to have staff privileges at a local hospital.
Supporters of the law argue it is intended to make abortions safer and improve patient care. But critics say the law will unnecessarily restrict a woman’s right under the U.S. Constitution to choose to have an abortion.
Filed in Montgomery, the lawsuit said the law will lead to the closure of three out of the state’s five licensed health centers that provide abortions.
“We are in court to protect a woman’s ability to make her own personal, private, health-care decisions,” Staci Fox, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Southeast, said in a statement.
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