CHICAGO - An Illinois judge has issued a temporary restraining order delaying enforcement of a law requiring doctors to notify parents of teens who are seeking an abortion.
The order, issued yesterday, was sought by the American Civil Liberties Union. It is to remain in effect until the judge can hear arguments on the group’s opposition.
It came just hours after the state’s Medical Disciplinary Board voted not to extend a 90-day grace period put into place in August, meaning the law would have taken effect.
Illinois’ law was passed in 1995 but never enforced because of various court actions. It requires doctors to notify the parents or guardians of girls 17 or younger 48 hours before an abortion. It requires no notice in a medical emergency or in cases of sexual abuse, and a provision allows girls to bypass parental notification by going to a judge.
The Parental Notice of Abortion Act was not enforced because the Illinois Supreme Court refused to issue rules spelling out how judges should handle appeals of the notification requirement. The Illinois Supreme Court issued those rules in 2006.
But last year, a federal judge again refused to allow enforcement, saying the law still failed to give teenagers workable judicial options to notifying her parents.
In July, a federal appeals court lifted the injunction on the 1995 version.
Then in August, the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation granted doctors a 90-day grace period before the law would go into effect.
