INDIANAPOLIS (AP) 鈥 Indiana鈥檚 six abortion clinics have stopped providing abortions ahead of the state鈥檚 near-total abortion ban officially taking effect and as a petition is pending before the state鈥檚 high court asking it to keep the ban on hold while legal action continues, clinic officials said Tuesday.
Planned Parenthood鈥檚 four Indiana abortion clinics stopped performing abortions Monday in accordance with state guidance that providers received in July alerting them that on or around Tuesday abortion would become illegal in Indiana in clinic settings 鈥渨ith really very, very limited exceptions,鈥 said Rebecca Gibron, CEO of the Planned Parenthood division that includes Indiana.
Indiana鈥檚 two other abortion clinics have also stopped providing abortions, with one calling it 鈥渁 dark day for Indiana.鈥
Indiana's will end most abortions in the state, even in the earliest stages of a pregnancy. Indiana became the after the U.S. Supreme Court ended nearly a half-century of federal abortion protections by in June 2022.
Although Planned Parenthood's four Indiana abortion clinics have stopped providing abortions, Gibron said its 11 health centers across the state continue offering a wide range of services, including emergency contraception and birth control, even as the group works to help Hoosiers obtain out-of-state abortions.
鈥淧lanned Parenthood will not be intimidated and bullied and we will not be silenced,鈥 she said at a news conference outside one of the group's clinics that provided abortions in Indianapolis.
Indiana鈥檚 ban will eliminate the licenses for all seven abortion clinics in the state 鈥 one of which 鈥 and ban most abortions, even in the earliest stages of a pregnancy. It includes exceptions allowing abortions at hospitals in cases of rape or incest before 10 weeks post-fertilization. It also allows abortions up to 20 weeks to protect the life and physical health of the mother or if a fetus is diagnosed with a lethal anomaly.
Before Indiana's ban was passed, the state's laws generally prohibited abortions after the 20th week of pregnancy and tightly restricted them after the 13th week.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana, representing , challenged the ban's constitutionality. But in a , the Indiana Supreme Court found that the ban doesn鈥檛 violate the state constitution. Its ruling struck down a preliminary injunction that had kept the ban on hold, although that ruling has yet to be certified to officially take effect.
On Monday 鈥 the last day for it to do so 鈥 the ACLU of Indiana filed a petition for a rehearing with the high court asking it to keep the ban on hold while it pursues a narrower preliminary injunction in a trial court to address the scope of the ban鈥檚 exemption allowing women facing serious health risks to obtain abortions.
That filing delays the certification of the court鈥檚 ruling while it considers whether to grant or deny that petition, said court spokesperson Kathryn Dolan. It鈥檚 unclear how long it may take the high court to decide the matter. But the state attorney general鈥檚 office, which had 15 days to respond to the rehearing request, filed it Tuesday, urging the court to 鈥減romptly deny plaintiffs鈥 groundless and exceedingly calculated rehearing petition鈥 and calling it 鈥渁 transparent attempt鈥 to delay certification of the court鈥檚 ruling.
Attorney General鈥檚 office spokeswoman Katlyn Milligan said in a statement Tuesday that, 鈥淥n the eve of Indiana鈥檚 pro-life law going into effect, the ACLU and Planned Parenthood made a desperate attempt to prevent Indiana from enforcing our own law. We responded to this filing immediately and are now waiting for the Court to rule.鈥
Planned Parenthood ended abortion services at its four clinics Monday in light of the state鈥檚 guidance and the uncertainty over when the court will certify its abortion ban ruling, Gibron said.
鈥淭he reality is that it can happen at any point. The Supreme Court could certify it this afternoon,鈥 she said.
Gibron said Indiana鈥檚 abortion ban will 鈥渢arget Hoosiers of color, indigenous communities and those already marginalized by our health care system.鈥
Indiana鈥檚 two other abortion clinics, which are not operated by Planned Parenthood and are both located in Indianapolis, have also stopped providing abortion care.
In a statement, Clinic for Women owner LaDonna Prince said the clinic ended abortions on Monday, calling it "a dark day for Indiana and for the country.鈥
The state's other abortion clinic, Women's Med, stopped providing abortions on Friday, a representative said Tuesday.
Although Planned Parenthood's Indiana abortion clinics are no longer performing abortions, Gibron said a 鈥減atient navigation team鈥 is working to help patients get out-of-state abortions. That includes helping schedule appointments and finding ways to help them pay the costs of traveling out of state.
Adjacent Illinois and Michigan 鈥 states where abortion remains legal 鈥 will most likely become the destinations for many Indiana residents seeking out-of-state abortion care, said Gibron, who is CEO for Planned Parenthood Great Northwest, Hawaii, Alaska, Indiana, Kentucky.
Planned Parenthood of Illinois had prepared for years for the possibility of Roe v. Wade falling, and it opened clinics near the Indiana and Wisconsin borders in 2018 and 2020 in anticipation of those states restricting access to abortion, said Kristen Schultz, the affiliate's chief strategy and operations officer.
She said patients from Indiana nearly doubled after the state鈥檚 ban briefly went into effect last September and that traffic is expected to rise again starting this week. Schultz said more doctors, advanced nurse practitioners and medical assistants have been hired to accommodate the expected surge.
鈥淭he demand has increased, the challenges have increased when patients show up at our doors having traveled eight or ten or 12 hours. That鈥檚 an increased burden on the patient. And our staff really feel that," she said.
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Claire Savage, a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative, contributed to this report.
