

A federal judge has ruled that Alabama cannot ban abortions as part of the state’s response to the coronavirus.

US district judge Myron Thompson on Sunday issued a preliminary injunction sought by clinics to prevent the state from forbidding abortions as part of a ban on elective medical procedures during the Covid-19 outbreak. He said abortion providers could decide whether a procedure could wait.

The US Center for Reproductive Rights filed emergency lawsuits in five states to thwart moves by legislators to ban abortion during the pandemic.

In the Alabama court judgement, Thompson said that based on the current record, the defendants’ efforts to combat Covid-19 did not outweigh the lasting harm imposed by the denial of an individual’s right to terminate her pregnancy, by an undue burden or increase in risk on patients imposed by a delayed procedure, or by the cloud of unwarranted prosecution against providers.



The ruling was a victory for abortion rights advocates who are fighting efforts in Texas, Ohio, Alabama and other states to prohibit abortion services during the Covid-19 pandemic. States have argued they need to conserve medical equipment and potential hospital beds during the outbreak.



Abortion clinics in Alabama said they sought the injunction after the state refused to clarify that the clinics could continue to operate.



Alabama had ordered a postponement of medical procedures except in cases of a medical emergency or to avoid serious harm from an underlying condition or disease, or necessary as part of a patient’s ongoing and active treatment.



A lawyer representing clinics praised the decision. Preventing someone from getting an abortion did not do anything to stop Covid-19, it just took the decision on whether to have a child out of their hands, said Alexa Kolbi-Molinas, a senior staff attorney at the American Civil Liberties Union’s reproductive freedom project.



The Alabama attorney general’s office did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.



The US ruling came as the World Health Organization was being urged to declare abortion an essential health service during the pandemic. It earlier issued guidance notes advising all governments that women’s right to sexual and reproductive healthcare “should be respected irrespective of Covid-19 status, including access to contraception and safe abortion”.

There have been growing calls for governments to protect abortion services during the crisis. Last week, 100 NGOs issued a joint statement imploring European countries to find new ways to help women access services during lockdown, such as through online consultations and, as introduced in the UK last month, by allowing them to take abortion pills at home.

Marie Stopes International has warned that up to 9.5 million women and girls would not access family planning services this year because of the pandemic, which could result in as many as 3m unintended pregnancies and 2.7m unsafe abortions.