Wyoming abortion facility sues over pro-life legislation

Wellspring Health Access and pro-abortion group Chelsea’s Fund late last week filed a lawsuit against the state over two measures aimed at protecting unborn babies. Wellspring is the only abortion facility in the state, located in the central city of Casper. It stopped performing abortions Friday after a new law took effect. Two abortionists, a nurse, and an organization that administers abortion pills after remote consultations also joined the lawsuit.

What do the laws say? Gov. Mark Gordon last week signed into law a bill that immediately placed strict restrictions on facilities that perform abortions. The first measure requires facilities to receive licensing as ambulatory surgical centers for patients who do not need to be hospitalized. The licensing requires a center to have hallways wide enough to accommodate an ambulance gurney and requires abortionists to obtain admitting privileges at a nearby hospital.

Another bill was preemptively objected to in Wellspring’s lawsuit. That bill, which Gov. Mark Gordon vetoed, would have required women to receive an ultrasound at least 48 hours before taking abortion drugs. 

Reports disagree on whether women are more likely to choose life after seeing their baby on an ultrasound. One study published in 2014 found that women who were unsure about whether or not to have an abortion were more likely to choose not to after an ultrasound. The pro-life organization PreBorn! said about 80% of women who visit an associated clinic and see their baby choose life. Meanwhile, another study conducted by Arizona State University found that the majority of women who had an ultrasound still chose an abortion.

Are there other cases involving abortion in the state? A group of abortion advocates in 2022 sued Wyoming over a trigger law that would have taken effect once the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. The law would protect babies after they could survive outside the womb unless necessary to save a pregnant woman’s life. The state supreme court declined to hear the case and the Wyoming legislature in 2023 passed new laws that would protect babies, including the country’s first ban on abortion pills. A district court judge in November ruled that the laws violate the state constitution and a state attorney last month filed an argument claiming the judge made a mistake in the ruling.

Dig deeper: Read Leah Savas’ report in Vitals about Texas lawmakers considering punishments for women who abort their babies. 

— Editor's note:  This story has been corrected for accuracy. An earlier version of this story should have stated that Gov. Mark Gordon did not sign the bill to mandate ultrasounds for women seeking abortions.