Supreme Court Justice Temporarily Halts Louisiana Abortion Rules

(Bloomberg) -- A U.S. Supreme Court justice blocked Louisiana from enforcing new requirements on abortion doctors until at least Feb. 7 while the justices consider whether to grant a request for a longer halt.

Justice Samuel Alito said the order "does not reflect any view regarding the merits" and was necessary given the tight time frame. The measure was set to take effect Monday.

The Louisiana law, which requires doctors to get admitting privileges at a local hospital, is virtually identical to a Texas law the Supreme Court struck down in 2016.

Abortion-rights advocates say the measure would leave the state with only one clinic and a single doctor who can perform abortions. Louisiana officials say it’s not clear any clinics would have to close as a result of the law.

To contact the reporter on this story: Greg Stohr in Washington at gstohr@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Joe Sobczyk at jsobczyk@bloomberg.net, Laurie Asséo

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