NASHVILLE (AP) — A federal appeals court on Wednesday will listen to arguments over whether to uphold a 48-hour waiting period for women seeking abortions in Tennessee.
The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reinstated the waiting period earlier this year amid a lengthy battle challenging a 2015 Tennessee law that required women to make two trips to an abortion clinic – first for mandatory counseling and then for the abortion at least 48 hours later.
A lower federal court previously struck the law down last year. The appeals court initially upheld that decision, but later agreed to reinstate the waiting period as the state's appeal is resolved.
According to the groups Planned Parenthood and the Center for Reproductive Rights, other waiting periods have been passed in more than 25 states.