A federal judge has blocked a new Indiana law that bans abortions sought because of a fetus's genetic abnormalities.
U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Walton Pratt released a ruling Thursday that grants the preliminary injunction sought by Planned Parenthood of Indiana and Kentucky. The law was to set to take effect Friday.
Pratt said the state doesn't have the authority to limit a woman's reasons for ending a pregnancy. She said the Indiana law would go against U.S. Supreme Court rulings that states may not prohibit a woman from seeking an abortion before fetal viability.
Indiana and North Dakota are the only states with laws banning abortions that are sought due to fetal genetic abnormalities, such as Down syndrome, or because of the race, sex or ancestry of a fetus. The Indiana law also requires that aborted fetuses be buried or cremated.
Planned Parenthood and the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana sued the state in April, saying the law is unconstitutional and violates women's privacy rights. Pratt heard arguments June 14.
An attorney for Indiana argued before Pratt earlier this month that the state has an interest in "preventing discrimination" against fetuses with genetic abnormalities, such as Down syndrome.
