Oklahoma’s tighter restrictions on abortions are set to take effect next month after a judge on Monday declined requests to block them.
The ruling by Oklahoma County District Judge Cindy Truong means the new abortion restrictions will begin Nov. 1 barring further court action.
In April, Gov. Kevin Stitt signed bills further regulating abortions in Oklahoma.
One will prohibit abortion after a fetal heartbeat is detected, which can be as early as six weeks into a pregnancy.
Another requires physicians who perform abortions to be certified in obstetrics and gynecology. A third revokes a physician’s license for one year if they perform an illegal abortion, with an exception to prevent the death of a mother. And another places a three-day waiting period on medication commonly referred to as the abortion pill.
“While we believe all five laws challenged in this suit are constitutional, I applaud Judge Truong for at least upholding three commonsense abortion regulations that will protect Oklahomans,” the state Attorney General’s Office said in a statement. “The plaintiffs in this case have indicated they will appeal, and my office will continue to vigorously defend the pro-life laws enacted by the people’s representatives. On appeal, we will continue to argue that all five of the challenged laws should be upheld because the Oklahoma Constitution does not protect the right to abortion.”
This article was originally posted on Oklahoma judge denies requests to suspend new abortion laws
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