All five abortion clinics operating in Louisiana are set to close thanks to the new, super sneaky laws, emergency measures, and blood test requirements that drastically decrease the window for getting the procedure done within the 20-week cut off.

Zoe Carpenter at The Nation reports that none of the existing clinics can meet the new, seemingly arbitrary space requirements (and convoluted staffing requirements) outlined in the "new abortion rules" that went into effect in November. Traveling to another state for the procedure is often impossible, since it's really goddamn expensive and most patients can't afford the cost. Also problematic is that the law is asking for a mandatory 30-day waiting period to be put into effect via blood testing—doctors often do blood tests when you're pregnant, but there's no medical rationale for the waiting period. New Orleans attorney Ellie Schilling is calling this entire shitshow a "back door abortion ban":

“What it amounts to is a back door abortion ban. The way the [Department of Health and Hospitals] went about passing these regulations was in a secretive and undemocratic way. The public definitely doesn’t know what’s going on.”

There was a public hearing this morning that may have been canceled due to weather, and it's not clear if there will be another one scheduled before the end of the comment period. This is so frustratingly shady.