US judge temporarily blocks state abortion law

AFP FILE PHOTO

JACKSON, Mississippi – A federal judge has temporarily blocked enforcement of a Mississippi law that could shut down the only abortion clinic in the state.

U.S. District Judge Daniel P. Jordan in Jackson issued a temporary restraining order Sunday, hours after the new law took effect.

He set a July 11 hearing to determine whether to block the law for a longer time.

The law requires everyone who performs abortions at the clinic to be an OB-GYN with privileges to admit patients to a local hospital.

The clinic, Jackson Women’s Health Organization, filed a lawsuit seeking to block it.

The suit says the admitting privilege requirement is not medically necessary and is designed to put the clinic out of business.

Republican Gov. Phil Bryant has said he wants Mississippi to be abortion-free.