Women will have to wait 24 hours before having an abortion following a Florida judge’s ruling in a seven-year battle over the waiting period.
Judge Angela Dempsey in Tallahassee dismissed a lawsuit filed on behalf of a women’s clinic in Gainsville, saying other medical procedures have similar waiting periods and that other important decisions, such as marriage, divorce and buying a firearm have waiting periods. longer.
“Twenty-four hours is the minimum time necessary to consider such an important decision,” the judge wrote.
The waiting period takes effect immediately.
Dempsey added that the exceptions for the life of the mother, documented cases of rape and incest, and victims of domestic violence and human trafficking support the constitutionality of the law.
The Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops praised the decision.
“The 24-day cooling-off period is a reasonable measure that will empower women to make truly informed and deliberate decisions apart from pressure from the abortion industry,” Christie Arnold, a lobbyist for the organization, said in a press release. .
The ruling comes a month after the Florida legislature sent Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis a bill banning abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy. DeSantis is expected to sign it.
Former Governor and now US Senator Rick Scott signed the measure in June 2015. The American Civil Liberties Union of Florida and the Center for Reproductive Rights filed the lawsuit the next day on behalf of the Bread and Roses Women’s Health Center in Gainesville.
The suit argued that many women will have difficulty scheduling appointments on two consecutive days due to their work or school schedules, the availability of child care and the need to travel, especially if they have low incomes.