A.G. Appeals to Eighth Circuit in Support of Pro-Life Laws

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Last week, Attorney General Leslie Rutledge’s office filed a formal notice that it will appeal U.S. District Judge Kristine Baker’s decision to block the state from enforcing four good, pro-life laws.

This will put the four pro-life laws before the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals.

The Eighth Circuit has recently overturned two of Judge Baker’s past decisions against other pro-life laws and policies.

In 2015 the Arkansas Legislature passed a law requiring abortion clinics performing chemical abortions to contract with a physician who has admitting privileges at a hospital to handle complications from the abortion. In 2016, Judge Baker blocked that law from being enforced.

Last July, a three-judge panel at the Eighth Circuit overturned Judge Baker’s decision, paving the way for this good law to be enforced in Arkansas.

In 2015, Governor Hutchinson directed the state to cut Medicaid funds from Planned Parenthood. Following a lawsuit, Judge Baker ruled Arkansas must continue giving Medicaid money to the abortion provider.

However, on August 16 another three-judge panel at the Eighth Circuit overturned that decision as well.

Given the fact the Eighth Circuit has reversed two of Judge Baker’s rulings already, I believe there is a good possibility the Eighth Circuit will reverse her decision against these four pro-life laws as well.

Photo Credit: By Brian Turner (Flickr: My Trusty Gavel) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons.

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Iceland Aborting Virtually All Children With Down Syndrome

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A chilling news report from CBS found that in Iceland nearly all unborn babies diagnosed with Down syndrome in the womb are aborted.

One tagline for the article said, “Iceland is on pace to virtually eliminate Down syndrome through abortion.”

But despite what many people are saying, Iceland isn’t eradicating Down syndrome. Rather, they’re killing unborn babies who are at risk for Down syndrome.

John Stonestreet with the Colson Center for Christian Worldview writes,

Make no mistake—what we’re witnessing here is the systematic extermination of children who are, by society’s standards, less than perfect.

As Stonestreet points out, research published in the American Journal of Medical Genetics found that 99% of individuals with Down syndrome report being happy and just 4% of parents regretted their decision to keep their child with Down syndrome.

You can read Stonestreet’s entire commentary on this subject here.

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Timeline of the State’s Decision to Cut Ties With Planned Parenthood

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This week a federal appeals court ruled Arkansas could cut Medicaid reimbursements to Planned Parenthood. This ruling comes following nearly two years of litigation in federal court.

Below is a timeline of this issue and the legal battle surrounding it.

  • November 8, 1988: Voters in Arkansas passed Amendment 68 to the Arkansas Constitution prohibiting public funds from paying for abortion, except to save the mother’s life.
  • July 25, 1994: Following a lawsuit by an abortion clinic in Little Rock, a federal court blocked enforcement of Amendment 68, saying it violated the Hyde Amendment–a rider on the federal budget Congress passed in 1994 prohibiting public funding of abortions except in cases of rape or incest or to save the life of the mother.
  • July 25, 1995: The Eight Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the lower court’s ruling.
  • March 18, 1996: The U.S. Supreme Court overturned the ruling, essentially saying Amendment 68 could only be blocked insofar as it conflicted with the Hyde Amendment. Practically speaking, this has prevented public funding of abortion in most cases, with the exception of abortions paid for with Medicaid funds in certain circumstances permitted by the federal Hyde Amendment.
  • August 14, 2015: Governor Asa Hutchinson directed the Department of Human Services to terminate its Medicaid contract with Planned Parenthood.
  • October 2, 2015: U.S. District Judge Kristine Baker issued a preliminary injunction forcing the State of Arkansas to continue making Medicaid payments to Planned Parenthood following a lawsuit by three of Planned Parenthood’s patients.
  • September 29, 2016: U.S. District Judge Kristine Baker expanded that ruling to apply to all of Planned Parenthood’s patients in Arkansas. Arkansas’ attorney general appealed the ruling to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals.
  • August 16, 2017: A three judge panel from the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Arkansas can decline to provide Medicaid reimbursements to abortion providers.

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