Lower Court Holding
Decision of the Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals
We begin our analysis with the Supreme Court’s decision in Stenberg v. Carhart (2000). That case has engendered some disagreement as to the proper standard for evaluating the necessity of a health exception. The government argues Stenberg merely examined the specific factual record before the Court, and thus a health exception is only required when a banned procedure is actually "necessary, in appropriate medical judgment, for the preservation of the health of the mother."Plaintiffs, in contrast, contend that where substantial medical authority supports the proposition that banning a particular abortion procedure could endanger women’s health, Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania…
