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Iowa abortion providers are not required to impose a 24-hour waiting period before performing an abortion — yet.
The Iowa Attorney General's office said Tuesday that the waiting period at the center of a state Supreme Court decision last week did not immediately take effect. Instead, the law will take effect on July 8, three weeks after the Supreme Court ruling.
The Iowa Supreme Court on Friday ruled in the case of a 2020 law that required a 24-hour waiting period between a first appointment and an abortion procedure.
The court found that the state constitution does not protect a fundamental right to an abortion, reversing a previous court decision on a similar law. While abortion remains legal in Iowa, the decision was a significant blow to state abortion protections ahead of an upcoming U.S. Supreme Court case that may overturn Roe v. Wade, a federal precedent that preserves the right to an abortion before fetal viability.
However, the 182-page Iowa Supreme Court decision said little about the 24-hour waiting period itself. The Supreme Court sent the case back to a lower district court to reconsider.
More:Iowa Supreme Court says fundamental right to abortion not guaranteed under state constitution
The waiting period is not in effect until "the case moves from the Supreme Court to the District Court — which happens 21 days after the ruling," Lynn Hicks, the attorney general's chief of staff, wrote in an email.
However, the district court may grant another injunction of the law, Hicks said.
After the ruling, Planned Parenthood rescheduled appointments and announced it would observe a 24-hour waiting period in Iowa, effective immediately. Planned Parenthood, the largest provider of abortions in Iowa, had not announced any changes to that policy by Tuesday afternoon.
"We are glad that the Attorney General's office has communicated that the state will not enforce the law before the case goes back to the district court, likely in July," American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa Legal Director Rita Bettis Austen said in a statement. "Planned Parenthood is evaluating the best way to serve patients during this time period."
More:Is there a 24-hour waiting period for abortions in Iowa? Planned Parenthood, ACLU say yes.
Abortion laws are shifting across the country as the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to rule in a case that may overturn Roe v. Wade, a 1973 decision that protects the right to an abortion before fetal viability. If the court overturns that precedent, lawmakers in Iowa and other states will have a newfound opportunity to restrict the procedure.
The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to rule in the Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization case as early as Thursday. Iowa justices suggested the federal decision in the Dobbs case might inform the district court's judgment on the 24-hour waiting period law and other abortion restrictions.
"While we zealously guard our ability to interpret the Iowa Constitution independently of the Supreme Court’s interpretations of the Federal Constitution, the opinion (or opinions) in that case may provide insights that we are currently lacking," the justices wrote.
Republicans control most of Iowa state government, including the governor's office and both chambers of the Legislature. Leaders did not share any specific legislative plans, but they celebrated the Iowa Supreme Court decision on Friday.
Gov. Kim Reynolds said it was "a significant victory in our fight to protect the unborn."
Republican majorities in Iowa have previously approved a 72-hour waiting period and a "fetal heartbeat" law that would have banned abortion at six weeks — one of the most restrictive laws in the country. Iowa courts blocked the enactment of those laws.
Iowa Republican leaders are also moving ahead with a constitutional amendment that would make explicit that Iowa does not "recognize, grant, or secure a right to abortion or require the public funding of abortion."
Katie Akin is a politics reporter for the Register. Reach her at kakin@registermedia.com or at 410-340-3440. Follow her on Twitter at @katie_akin.
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