Iowaâs State Supreme Court has struck down a ban on telemedicine abortions, saying the prohibition is unconstitutional. Itâs the first time in more than 40 years Iowaâs highest court has considered an abortion case. It could also have national implications: other states have considered setting up a similar system to serve abortion-seeking patients in rural areas.
The Des Moines Register reports that the State Supreme Court ruled Friday that the telemedicine procedure can be used, saying itâs the first time in more than four decades theyâve considered a measure having to do with abortion. Iowa established the telemedicine program in 2008: patients are treated by an in-person nurse, then do a consultation by video with a doctor, who then remotely unlocks a drawer containing the abortion medications mifepristone and misoprostol.
In 2013, Iowaâs Board of Medicine voted to ban the procedure, arguing it was unsafe. Planned Parenthood points out that that the board was appointed by the anti-abortion governor and included a Catholic priest and a doctor who likened using the abortion pill to âdelivering a fetus,â which, no:
âHow can any of us possibly find that a medical abortion performed over the internet is as safe as one provided by a physician in person?â asked Dr. Greg Hoversten of Iowa City, who is the board chairman. He said complications from the pills can be serious. âThe woman essentially goes home and labors and delivers a fetus. Itâs very bloody. Itâs painful. Thereâs cramping, pelvic cramping.â
The American College of Gynecologists and Obstetricians found telemedicine abortions to be safe; so did a prior, less anti-abortion version of the Iowa Medical Board.
In a press release today, Planned Parenthood, which has nine Iowa clinics that can now legally perform telemedicine abortions again, called it âa big victory for Iowa women,â in the words of PPFA president Cecile Richards, who added, âSimilar restrictions and bans on abortion are being pushed through in other states, and this ruling sends a strong and clear message to politicians across the country. Restrictions and bans on abortion are unconstitutional and deeply unpopular, and we will continue to fight them in every state in this country.â
Contact the author at anna.merlan@jezebel.com.
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A telemedicine terminal with RU-486 in a drawer at the Planned Parenthood in Des Moines, Iowa. Image via AP.
