7th Circuit: Abortionists in Indiana Must Report ‘Complications’ Arising from Abortions to State

In Indiana, abortionists must report complications that arise from abortions. One would think this requirement for medical professionals makes sense. But abortion advocates believe any law that would delay the killing or add more accountability for the people doing the killing unduly burdens a woman’s “right” to rid herself of an unwanted baby.

Planned Parenthood and other abortion advocates call the law unconstitutionally vague, but the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit disagrees. The court lifted an injunction against the law’s enforcement. From the Indiana Lawyer:

The suit — Planned Parenthood of Indiana Kentucky, Inc. v. Marion County Prosecutor, et al., 20-2407 — deals with 2018’s Senate Enrolled Act 340, which required abortion providers to report “complications” to the Indiana Department of Health, which would then file an aggregate report with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Abortion complications were defined in the law as “any adverse physical or psychological condition arising from the induction or performance of an abortion.”
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But the 7th Circuit reversed the district court’s summary judgment ruling and vacated its permanent injunction on that basis, finding that while the statute does have some ambiguity, Planned Parenthood did not show that the law was unconstitutionally vague on its face. The case was remanded to the district court for further proceedings.

Todd Rokita, the state’s attorney general, told the Indiana Lawyer that abortion complications “have been notoriously difficult to track, resulting in a skewed understanding of the danger abortion poses to women. Enforcement of this reporting law is a big step in the direction of collecting accurate data on the harms abortion causes.”

The pro-life Rokita said on Twitter the court’s decision “is a huge win for the safety of women. Complications from abortion have been notoriously difficult to track, resulting in a skewed understanding of the danger abortion poses to women.”