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ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — The New Mexico Supreme Court on Friday stayed a local anti-abortion ordinance pending the outcome of a lawsuit centered on the constitutional right to equal protection and due process.
The ruling follows a new abortion rights bill that the state recently adopted, granting a request by Democratic state attorney general Raul Torres. It was signed weeks ago by Democratic Gov. Michelle LeJean Grisham to void local ordinances aimed at restricting access to abortion procedures and medicines.
The state already had one of the most liberal abortion access laws in the nation, but recently two counties and three cities in eastern New Mexico have introduced restrictions that reflect deep-seated opposition to the provision of surgical abortions. adopted. Torrez’s petition and legislation recently passed by his 60-day legislature are intended to nullify those ordinances and prevent other counties from adopting abortion restrictions.
The goal is for New Mexico to remain a safe haven for women seeking abortions, Torres said in a statement Friday.
The legislation and petition “will make clear that everyone in New Mexico has a protected constitutional right to make their own health care decisions,” he said. Given the attacks we’re seeing across the state and across the country, I’m proud to continue this fight with Congress and the Governor.”
This year, 20 Democratic governors launched a network aimed at improving access to abortion Following a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that nullified a woman’s constitutional right to terminate her pregnancy.
In 2021, the Democratic-led New Mexico legislature secured access to abortions by repealing a dormant 1969 law that banned most abortion procedures as a felony, even after federal courts withdrew the guarantees. The governor has also signed a series of executive orders that, among other things, prohibit state cooperation with other states that could impede access to abortion.
Changes over the past two years have seen more providers move to New Mexico and bring in patients.
Mississippi’s only abortion clinic moves to southern New Mexico. San Francisco-based telemedicine provider Choix received a license to operate in New Mexico last year.
One of the largest abortion providers operating in Texas last week opened a new clinic in New Mexico’s largest city. In her first week, she had more than a dozen patients walk through the doors of her Albuquerque clinic, all of them from Texas, according to Whole Woman’s Health officials. For some, it took a road trip of about 900 miles (1,448 kilometers).
“And the people who cared for the patients were all from Texas, too. It was an inspiring day.”
Whole Woman’s Health launched a fundraiser last summer to help cover the cost of moving equipment and supplies from Texas to New Mexico, as well as the purchase of a building to serve as their new home.
New Mexico’s governor also pledged $10 million to build a new abortion clinic in the southern part of the state near El Paso, Texas.
The New Mexico Supreme Court has outlined a timeline for ongoing ordinance lawsuits in the cities of Hobbs, Clovis, and Eunice, as well as Lee and Roosevelt counties. A report due in April said that any impact of the new abortion rights law on the case would need to be addressed.
In the previous overview A coalition of anti-abortion groups presented to the courts, in the hope that the lower courts would force the courts to declare new constitutional rights without the benefit of taking the issue up, would allow the Attorney General to file an emergency petition to replace the ordinary He claimed to have avoided legal proceedings.
Erin Hawley, an Alliance Defending Freedom attorney representing the group, said on Friday, “Creating a so-called ‘right’ for abortion out of nothing is a serious error from the New Mexico Supreme Court. She also challenged a law banning local ordinances restricting access.
“State legislatures need to ensure that life is a human right and that women and families facing unplanned pregnancies have real support,” Hawley said.
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