Update "Admitting Privileges" Law

Mississippi abortion clinic gets reprieve as it fights to stay open

Jackson, MS, Apr. 15, 2013 (Written by Associated Press) Clarion Ledger newspaper

A federal judge has temporarily blocked Mississippi from revoking the license of the state's only abortion clinic.

U.S. District Judge Daniel P. Jordan III on Monday extended an injunction he issued several months ago, which blocks the state from closing the clinic as it tries to fulfill a 2012 state law.

The law requires all OB-GYNs who do abortions at the clinic, Jackson Women's Health Organization, to have admitting privileges at a local hospital.

Jordan's ruling comes three days before the state Department of Health was scheduled to hold a license revocation hearing for the clinic over its self-acknowledged inability to get the admitting privileges.

Jordan's ruling says the state cannot close the clinic while it still has a federal lawsuit pending to challenge the 2012 law.

Mississippi’s last abortion clinic sues to block state law that may close its doors

Jackson, MS, November 29, 2012, (LifeSiteNews.com) – Attorneys for Mississippi’s only abortion clinic once again sued in federal court Wednesday to block a state law that may force the facility’s closure.

Lawyers representing the Jackson Women’s Health Organization complain that the center’s abortionists have been unable to secure admitting privileges at local hospitals, despite repeated requests for access.

To read the rest of the article click the link below:

Urgent Prayer Request – That the Judicial System will allow “Admitting Privileges” Law to go into effect.

On April 16, 2012, Governor Phil Bryant signed into law House Bill 1390, requiring that all physicians who perform abortions in Mississippi abortion facilities be board certified in obstetrics and gynecology and must have admitting privileges at a local hospital. The law was to take effect on Sunday, July 1.  However, as expected, Jackson Women's Health Organization (JWHO), the sole remaining abortion clinic in the state, filed suit in federal court to block the statute from going into effect, claiming the law puts an unjustified requirement on abortion doctors. 

U.S. District Judge Daniel P. Jordan III on Wednesday, July 11, 2012 extended a temporary restraining order blocking Mississippi from enforcing a new state law that tightens requirements on abortion clinics, saying he wanted time to review how the law will be applied.

Spiritual warfare is intense as the Culture of Life faces down the Culture of Death, and your prayers are vital to the success of this battle.  Christ's own words give us our battle plan: "And I say to thee that thou art Peter; and upon this Rock I will build My church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it."  Matt 16:18

We are asking you to go to the gates of hell, to the sidewalk in front of the child-killing center, located at 2903 N. State Street in Fondren and PRAY as you have never prayed before.  If upheld, this law would effectively close down JWHO, and, for a season at least, Mississippi would be abortion free!  Come storm the gates of Heaven at the gates of Hell.  If you cannot come in person, please retire to your prayer closet and PRAY! 

“And if My people who are called by My name, will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”
2 Chronicles 7:14

• 12 other states have laws requiring physicians who perform abortions to maintain hospital admitting privileges.  The purpose of these laws is to protect the health and safety of women, not to close the clinic per se.

• Mississippi women HAVE been injured during abortion procedures and have needed hospitalization.  Dr. Joseph Booker, a former abortionist at JWHO, recently lost a medical malpractice lawsuit involving a patient who spent 3 weeks in a coma in intensive care as a result of injuries sustained during an abortion at JWHO.  The injured woman was awarded a judgment of over $600,000, but has been unable to collect these damages because neither Booker nor JWHO carry medical malpractice insurance.

• Abortion providers will be required to carry malpractice insurance to qualify for admitting privileges to any area hospital.  This protects MS women who will be able to recover financial damages.  Injured women thus far have been left with no recourse in the event of an adverse event, and frequently their medical bills are covered under Medicaid at taxpayer expense.

• The owners of JWHO were required to surrender the license of their abortion clinic in Alabama on May 18, 2012, because of gross deficiencies found by the Alabama Board of Health.  JWHO employs the same doctor who injured three women in one day at their Birmingham clinic, requiring hospitalization of all three.  Therefore, requiring local hospital admitting privileges is not only a  reasonable requirement but appropriate for the level of risk inherent to surgical abortion.

• Every other outpatient surgical center in MS requires their physicians to carry malpractice insurance.  This is the standard of care, and MS women deserve excellent medical care in a qualified surgical facility.

• The fact that JWHO is the only remaining abortion clinic in the state is immaterial.  If it cannot provide services conforming to the local standard of medical care, it should not be allowed to operate under substandard conditions.

The following websites can provide more information about House Bill 1390 and its challenge:

An article on the Operation Rescue website titled “Mississippi Abortion Clinic Deceptively Hides Abortion Abuses in Court Challenge”

Video from WJTV news coverage from the abortion clinic on July 2, 2012