U.S. District Judge Henry Hudson vacated his May 6 ruling on Falls Church
Medical Center v. Oliver, which would have allowed non-physicians to perform
first- and second-trimester abortions. The question of whether non-doctors can
perform abortions and other issues related to the case will be decided at trial
May 20.
“We continue to hope that the common-sense health and safety regulations
enacted by the Virginia General Assembly to protect women in our state will not
be struck down,” said the Virginia Catholic Conference in a May 15 statement
regarding the case. “We urge Catholics and all people of good will to remain
prayerful and engaged in the face of the extreme abortion agenda being imposed
on our commonwealth.”
In the aftermath of the original ruling, Virginia Bishops Michael F.
Burbidge and Barry C. Knestout criticized the court decision that ruled in
favor of abortion providers who say current Virginia law hinders their ability
to perform abortions.
The bishops wrote:
“On May 6, laws enacted by the people of Virginia were undermined when a
U.S. district court decision further advanced the extreme agenda of the
abortion industry and placed Virginia’s women at ever greater risk of harm from
surgical abortion.
“In Falls Church Medical Center v. Oliver, U.S. District Judge Henry
Hudson’s decision now allows non-physicians to perform first trimester
abortions in Virginia. Judge Hudson’s May 6, 2019, summary judgment opinion
goes beyond Roe v. Wade and reveals the extreme measures that are being taken
by pro-abortion groups to eliminate even common-sense restrictions on abortion.
“The case is still in progress, as several other counts that seek to
expand ‘abortion rights’ remain undecided. This disappointing and legally
questionable decision is another example of why we must all remain vigilant and
mobilized as the extreme abortion agenda continues to be advanced in Virginia.”
Several abortion-providing facilities and entities, including Falls Church
Medical Center and Virginia League Planned Parenthood, sued the commonwealth
for regulations that “pose a substantial obstacle to the availability of
abortion services for Virginia women, in violation of the Fourteenth Amendment
to the United States Constitution.” According to the ruling, during the trial,
the plaintiffs, or abortion providers, offered testimony that a surgical
abortion is a safe medical procedure that can be performed by non-doctors, such
as nurse practitioners, even in the second trimester. Defendants argued that
abortion is safest when performed by a doctor in a hospital setting.
“This is a continuation of the extreme abortion agenda we saw introduced
at the General Assembly earlier this year,” said Amy McInerny, director of
Respect Life. “Women deserve better.”