Judge lifts restraining order on abortion law — for now

A federal judge on Monday conditionally lifted a temporary restraining order that had stopped the state from enforcing an abortion law requiring new licensing standards for clinics.

The operator of two clinics — the Women's Center in Nashville and the Bristol Regional Women's Center in East Tennessee — claimed they were unable to obtain licenses from the state Department of Health in time to comply with the new law, which went into effect July 1.

U.S. District Judge Kevin Sharp granted the temporary order in late June to allow the clinics to initiate the process, but lifted it Monday, noting the clinics and state licensing officials are now actively working toward becoming licensed.

However, Sharp left open the possibility he would revisit the order as soon as Thursday.

The lawsuit, originally filed June 25, seeks more broadly to set aside two new Tennessee abortion laws that took effect July 1. The first is the new rule requiring all abortion clinics providing 50 or more abortions annually to become licensed as ambulatory surgical treatment centers, a designation that requires physical building and safety standards. The suit also seeks to block a newly enacted measure requiring women seeking an abortion to undergo a 48-hour waiting period after first receiving in-person counseling by a physician.

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Nashville, also includes a challenge to a 2012 Tennessee law that requires doctors performing abortions to obtain admitting privileges at a local hospital. The law has forced the closure of two abortion clinic since it was enacted, according to the lawsuit.

Attorneys for the clinic operators said that physicians employed by the clinics were concerned about possible prosecution or the loss of their physician licenses should local district attorneys seek to file criminal charges on the basis they were not complying with the new state law.

The physicians are "not comfortable practicing," said attorney Scott Tift with the law firm Barrett Johnston Martin & Garrison. Stephanie Toti, senior counsel for the New York City-based Center for Reproductive Rights, is also representing the clinics.

"The concern on the part of these doctors is about the potential to lose their licenses or be charged with a crime," Tift said

Special counsel Steven Hart with the attorney general's office, who is defending the lawsuit, disputed that.

"There is no indication either of the district attorneys are intending to prosecute," Hart said.

But Sharp was skeptical. "What's to stop them?" the judge asked, noting that the issue of abortion is highly politicized and district attorneys are elected officials.

Sharp offered attorneys for the clinics the chance to amend their suit to include district attorneys in Nashville and Sullivan County, where the Bristol clinic is located, and to request prosecutors in both counties submit statements they would not seek charges against the physicians.

If those district attorneys are unwilling to submit such statements, Sharp said he will hold an emergency hearing on Thursday to review his decision.

In addition to the clinics in Bristol and Nashville, Dr. Wesley Adams Jr., an obstetrician-gynecologist who performs abortions in those facilities, and CHOICES, the Memphis Center for Reproductive Health are plaintiffs in the lawsuit.

Reach Anita Wadhwani at 615-259-8092 or on Twitter @AnitaWadhwani.