Abortion providers seek to broaden access to the procedure in Indiana

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Abortion providers and a pregnancy resource center are seeking a preliminary injunction to broaden the scope of a health or life exception to Indiana’s near-total abortion ban. In an amended complaint filed Thursday in Monroe County, south of Indianapolis, the plaintiffs also seek to expand beyond hospitals the sites where abortions can be performed. They argue Indiana’s ban outlaws abortion even in cases presenting a serious health risk and threatens providers with criminal and licensing penalties for providing care in such circumstances. They say the hospital requirement makes abortion inaccessible because only a few hospitals — concentrated in the Indianapolis area — provide abortions and typically do so at higher costs than at abortion clinics.