Colorado can’t prohibit a Catholic health clinic from using a controversial medication abortion “reversal” treatment, a federal judge ruled over the weekend in a lawsuit that seeks to block the first-of-its-kind state law on religious freedom grounds. U.S. District Court Judge Daniel Domenico late Saturday granted Bella Health and Wellness — an independent medical clinic with locations in Englewood and Denver — a narrow preliminary injunction against the state’s ban on a treatment that proponents say can reverse medication abortions. The ruling blocks Colorado from enforcing the prohibition against Bella Health and anyone working “in concert” with the Catholic clinic while its lawsuit proceeds. “The law at issue here runs afoul of… First Amendment principles,” Domenico wrote in his 45-page decision . “Because it does, the State must come forward with a compelling interest of the highest order to maintain the law. It has not even attempted to do so.” In early 2023, the Colorado legislature passed Senate Bill 23-190 , which declared the offering of “abortion-reversal medication” as unprofessional conduct under the state’s medical licensing laws. The legislation specifically bars medical professionals from giving the hormone progesterone to patients who decided to keep their pregnancies after taking medication […]

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