Earlier this week it was reported that Kentuckyâs staunchly anti-abortion governor, Matt Bevinâwho, along with his administration, has systematically dismantled the stateâs abortion servicesâis now hellbent on shuttering the stateâs one remaining abortion provider. The EMW Womenâs Surgical Center in Louisville was ordered to stop providing abortions beginning Monday, but, fortunately, that plan has been temporarily chilled.
On Friday, a federal judge granted the clinic a temporary restraining order, valid for 14 days, citing evidence that the, ârights of [the clinicâs] patients would be immediately and irreparably harmed,â without the courtâs intervention.
Senior staff attorney at the ACLUâs Reproductive Freedom Project Brigitte Amiri told CNN that lawyers on the team representing the clinic, âare thrilled and relieved that the court issued this order preventing the commonwealth of Kentucky from shutting down EMW. This means the women will continue to be able to get the critical care they need.
After being informed on March 13 that EMW would lose its license in 10 days (an extension until April 3 was later granted), on the grounds that its agreements with a local hospital and ambulance were âdeficient,â EMW, joined later by the ACLU, filed a lawsuit.
In response to the order, EMW protested that the surgical centerâs agreements with these facilities hadnât changed in several years, and that theyâd never been notified of any issues with these agreements before.
Amiri said in a statement earlier this week, âThe stateâs bureaucratic sleight of hand is fooling no one. This is an attempt to ban abortion in Kentucky, plain and simple. We are fighting to keep this from happening.â
