Court allows Missouri's only abortion clinic to stay open — for now

A Missouri judge issued an order Friday ensuring the state's only abortion clinic can continue providing the service, acting just hours before the St. Louis Planned Parenthood facility's licence was set to expire. 

The clinic will be able to stay open until June 4 when another hearing will be held, according to the court order. 

The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services had not renewed the clinic's licence, citing concerns with "failed abortions," compromised patient safety and legal violations at the clinic. Agency officials also insisted upon interviewing additional physicians at the clinic as part of an investigation.

Planned Parenthood pre-emptively sued this week to prevent a potential gap in abortion coverage. St. Louis Circuit Judge Michael Stelzer heard arguments Thursday. He said Planned Parenthood "has demonstrated that immediate and irreparable injury will result" if its abortion license is allowed to expire at midnight on Friday.

His ruling prevents Missouri from become the first state without an abortion clinic since the U.S. Supreme Court's 1973 Roe vs. Wade ruling that legalized the procedure nationwide.

The nearest clinic performing abortions is just across the Mississippi River in Granite City, Ill., less than 16 kilometres from the Planned Parenthood facility in St. Louis.

Planned Parenthood's abortion clinic in the Kansas City area is in Overland Park, Kan., just three kilometres from the state line. State figures show a handful of Missouri hospitals also perform abortions, but those are rare.

The fight over the clinic's licence comes as lawmakers in conservative states across the nation are passing new restrictions that take aim at Roe. Abortion opponents, emboldened by new conservative justices on the U.S. Supreme Court, are hoping federal courts will uphold laws that prohibit abortions before a fetus is viable outside the womb, the dividing line the high court set in Roe.

Louisiana, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi and Ohio have enacted bills barring abortion once there's a detectable fetal heartbeat, as early as the sixth week of pregnancy. Missouri lawmakers recently approved an eight-week ban on abortion. Alabama's gone even further, outlawing virtually all abortions, even in cases of rape or incest. None of the bans has taken effect, and all are expected to face legal challenges.

Anti-abortion rally

"Today is a victory for women across Missouri, but this fight is far from over," Planned Parenthood Federation of America CEO Dr. Leana Wen said in a statement. "We have seen just how vulnerable access to abortion care is here — and in the rest of the country."

Outside the clinic on Friday, a handful of anti-abortion protesters stood holding "Choose life" signs.

"Planned Parenthood is not above the law," said Mary Maschmeier, founder of the Defenders of the Unborn, an anti-abortion organization. "The deal is done when we have human life amendment and when Roe v. Wade is overturned."

Abortion is one of the most socially divisive issues in U.S. politics, with opponents often citing religious beliefs to call it immoral, while abortion-rights advocates say the bans amount to state control of women's bodies.

The number of abortions performed in Missouri has declined every year for the past decade, reaching a low of 2,910 last year. Of those, an estimated 1,210 occurred at eight weeks or less of pregnancy, according to preliminary statistics from the state health department.

Missouri women also seek abortions in other states. In Kansas, about 3,300 of the 7,000 abortions performed in 2018 were for Missouri residents, according to the state's health department. Illinois does not track the home states of women seeking abortions.