Attorneys representing Wellspring Health Access, the only clinic that, until recently, provided procedural abortions in Wyoming, filed notice on March 11 to dismiss their case in Natrona County District Court against two new restrictive abortion laws passed in the 68th Wyoming Legislature’s general session.
Wellspring’s founder and president Julie Burkhart told Wyoming Public Radio in an interview that her lawyers would soon be refiling the same civil lawsuit in Teton County District Court.
That’s because, according to Burkhart, as of this week the court in Natrona County had yet to respond to their filings, which were initially submitted on Feb. 28.
“In the meantime, we have not been seeing patients at our clinic in Casper,” said Burkhart. “As of last Friday, we had 77 patients we had to refer out, to be exact.”
She said that Wellspring has ceased providing healthcare services to all patients, not just those seeking medication and procedural abortions, because “we found that it would be in the best interest of us in the long term if we did not provide any services to make sure that we're walking currently within the letter of the law.”
Wellspring is unable to provide procedural abortions at the clinic due to HB 42, which imposes stringent regulations on any clinics providing such care. The clinic will have to renovate and its physicians will need admitting privileges to a hospital no less than 10 miles away.
Wellspring’s lawsuit is against HB 42 and HB 64, which requires women to obtain a transvaginal ultrasound 48 hours before receiving abortion medication. HB 64 was vetoed by Gov. Mark Gordon but then overridden by the Legislature. HB 42 was signed outright by Gordon.
Beyond abortion, Wellspring provides some gender-affirming care, OB-GYN healthcare and family planning services to its patients, which can include those coming from out of state.
“For us, being health care providers, time is of the essence,” Burkhart said. “We're heartbroken that we have to turn people away and refer them out. And so the decision was made that we would remove the case from Natrona County.”
Teton County District Court Judge Melissa Owens struck down two near-total abortion bans in 2023 on the grounds that they violated a tenet of the state Constitution. That tenet gives every Wyoming resident the right to make their own healthcare decisions.
Burkhart said she and her attorneys selected Teton County because of its “familiarity” to them after the 2024 ruling.
“We felt that it was logical to file in our own backyard, but we are nimble and flexible in taking the case to another venue,” she said.
Wyoming Public Radio asked Burkhart if the possibility that a more supportive judge, like Judge Owens, might be assigned the case factored into their decision to refile their lawsuit.
“I honestly don't know how the judges are selected in that court,” she said. “Typically, they're randomly selected, but I wouldn't want to speak on that. But that has not been part of our calculation. But we are definitely familiar with that district.”
Procedural and medication abortion remains legal in Wyoming.
This reporting was made possible by a grant from the Corporation For Public Broadcasting, supporting state government coverage in the state. Wyoming Public Media and Jackson Hole Community Radio are partnering to cover state issues both on air and online.
