Abortion providers will not be required to show a woman an ultrasound prior to the procedure in North Carolina.
The 4th U.S. Circuit of Appeals declared on Monday that the North Carolina law requiring abortion providers to show a woman an ultrasound of the fetus or embryo as well as describe it in detail four hours before the procedure to be unconstitutional.
A lower-court ruling put forward the same decision on the law, known as the Women’s Right to Know Act, in January. This circuit court decision means the issue could be headed to the Supreme Court.
“This compelled speech, even though it is a regulation of the medical profession, is ideological in intent and in kind,” the judges wrote in their 37-page opinion. “The means used by North Carolina extend well beyond those states have customarily employed to effectuate their undeniable interests in ensuring informed consent and in protecting the sanctity of life in all its phases.”
Even if the woman did not want the ultrasound pre-abortion, the medical provider would have to do it. Furthermore, any physician who did not comply with the requirement could lose his or her medical license, according to WRAL.com.
The 2011 law, which was passed by state legislators over then-Gov. Beverly Perdue’s veto, had been challenged by the American Civil Liberties Union, the Center for Reproductive Rights and Planned Parenthood Federation of America.
While abortion-rights supports hailed the decision, opponents were quick to criticize it.
“We are highly disappointed in the Fourth Circuit’s opinion and continue to believe that the display and description of the unborn child by the physician through an ultrasound is vital to ensuring truly informed consent,” John Rustin, president of the North Carolina Family Policy Council, said in a statement.
