Planned Parenthood of the Heartland, Inc. v. Iowa Board of Medicine (2015)

In Planned Parenthood of Heartland, Inc. v. Iowa Board of Medicine, 865 N.W.2d 252 (2015), the Iowa Board of Medicine ("the Board”) passed a rule of professional practice that prohibited telemedicine abortions, which are non-surgical abortions overseen by a medical practitioner via audio-visual connection (see: IAC 653 - 13.10(2) – 13.10(4)). Planned Parenthood of the Heartland, Inc. brought a claim against the Board citing that the prohibition of telemedicine abortions violated the equal protection clause by placing an undue burden on those seeking to exercise their right to terminate their pregnancy. The Iowa Supreme Court held that the Board’s prohibition of telemedicine abortions would unduly limit rural individuals in Iowa from exercising their right to terminate a pregnancy. Additionally, the Court determined that the Board’s actions were politically motivated and did not constitute sound public policy given that trained professionals administered a physical examination and follow-up appointments were mandatory.

Topics

• Abortion and reproductive health rights
• Gender discrimination

Geographical location

• North America
• United States
• Iowa

Keywords

• telemedicine abortions
• equal protection clause
• access to healthcare

Year

• 2015

External URL

• Planned Parenthood of the Heartland, Inc. v. Iowa Board of Medicine (2015)

Court

• Supreme Court of Iowa

Type

• Domestic Case Law

Jurisdiction

• Iowa