Kan. Licensing Rules for Abortion Clinics Blocked

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A federal judge has temporarily blocked Kansas from enforcing new rules for its abortion providers.

U.S. District Judge Carlos Murguia (Mer-GHEE'-uh) issued an order Friday after a hearing in a lawsuit against a new Kansas licensing law and regulations issued by the state health department. The law and regulations took effect Friday.

Murguia's order remains in effect until a trial in the lawsuit is settled.

The lawsuit was filed by two doctors who perform abortions at the Center for Women's Health in the Kansas City-area suburb of Overland Park. The center and another clinic, Aid for Women in Kansas City, haven't been licensed and couldn't legally continue to perform abortions.

The state's third provider, a Planned Parenthood clinic in Overland Park, received a license Thursday.