Oklahoma Coalition for Reproductive Justice v. Cline

2016 OK 17, 368 P.3d 1278, 2016 Okla. LEXIS 17, 2016 WL 704320
Supreme Court of Oklahoma·Decided February 23, 2016·No. No. 114,307·Published·Cited by 14 cases

Opinions

TAYLOR, J.

1 The dispositive question presented to this Court is whether H.B. 2684, ch, 121, 2014 Okla. Sess. Laws 375-80 (codified at 63 O.S.Supp. 2014, § 1-7292), violates either of two sections of the Oklahoma Constitution: Article V, Section I (vesting legislative authority in the Oklahoma House and Senate); or Article V, Section 59 (prohibiting special laws). We answer in the negative. A challenge to H.B. 2684 as violative of any other Oklahoma constitutional provision or as viola-tive of the United States Constitution is not before this Court, and we are thus limited in our decision1

I. HISTORY

T2 In determining the questions now before this Court, it is necessary to review H.B. 2684's predecessor, HB. 1970, ch, 216, 2011 Okla. Sess. Laws 821-28 (codified at 63 O.8.Supp. 2011, § 1-7292a), and our two pronouncements addressing it. In 2011, the Oklahoma Legislature enacted H.B. 1970, prohibiting the off-label use of Mifeprex (generally known as mifepristone or RU-486) and misoprostol (brand name Cytotee) for use in abortions.2 The effect of H.B. 1970 was to ban medication abortions in Oklahoma. Cline II, 2018 OK 93, ¶ 25, 313 P.3d at 262.

4 8 In the first pronouncement, this Court, following Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey, 505 U.S. 833, 112 S.Ct. 2791, 120 L.Ed.2d 674 (1992), affirmed the district court's decision that H.B. 1970 was unconstitutional. Okla. Coal for Reprod. Justice v. Cline, 2012 OK 102, ¶ 3, 292 P.3d 27, 27-28 (Cline I). After this Court rendered the Cline I decision, the appellees filed a petition for certiorari in the United States Supreme Court, See Cline v. Okla. Coal. for Reprod. Justice, - U.S. -, 133 S.Ct. 2887, 186 L.Ed.2d 932 (2013). The U.S. Supreme Court granted the petition and certified two questions to this Court: whether H.B, 1970 prohibits "(1) the use of misoprog-tol to induce abortions, including the use of misoprostol in conjunction with mifepristone according to a protocol approved by the Food and Drug Administration; and (2) the use of methotrexate to treat ectopic pregnancies." Cline II, 2013 OK 93, ¶ 8, 313 P.3d at 257. In Cline II, our second pronouncement, we answered both 'questions affirmatively. Id. 11, 313 P.3d at 255. »The U.S, Supreme Court then dismissed the petition for certio-rari as improvidently granted. Cline v. Okla. Coal. for Reprod. Justice, - U.S. -, 134 S.Ct., 550, 187 L.Ed.2d 361 (2013).

T4 In 2014, in response to the Cline II decision, the Legislature passed H.B. 2684, amending Title 638, Section 1-7292 of the Oklahoma Statutes. H.B. 2684, ch. 121, 2014 Okla. Sess. Laws 375-80. HB. 2684 was approved by the Governor and became effective on November 1, 2014. In H.B. 2684, the [1282] Legislature made 16 factual findings, including that the use of medication-inducing drugs presents significant risk to women, the complications of abortion-inducing drugs were higher than those for surgical abortions, fourteen women had died after off-label use of abortion-inducing drugs, and the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) had been unable to determine whether the off-label use caused the deaths3 The Legislature ex[1283] pressed its intent that the act fiot prohibit all medication abortions or the use of methotre-xate in treating ectopic pregnancies. HB. 2684, ch. 121, 2014 Okla. Sess. Laws 377, § 1-729a(A)(16) ("[This act does not ban the use of misoprostol in chemical abortion (and allows it as part of the FDA-approved Mife-prex regimen)... .").

| 5 H.B. 2684 restricts Mifeprex and miso-prostol use for abortions to the FDA-approved final Mifeprex label, prohibits metho-trexate use for abortions except to terminate ectopic pregnancies,4 provides for liability of physicians who knowingly or recklessly perform an abortion in violation of H.B. 2684, and makes doctors subject to discipline and lability for violating H.B. 2684. Id. at 377-79, § 1-729a(C)-(H). Because the Mifeprex label only allows its use for 49 days after the last menstrual period and Mifeprex off-label use allows for its use up to 63 days, the effect of H.B. 2684 is to ban the use of the Mife-prex and misoprostol drugs for pregnancies between 49 and 63 days from the last menstrual period.

T6 The Oklahoma Coalition for Reproductive Justice and Nova Health Systems (Plaintiffs) filed this challenge to H.B, 2684's restriction of off-label use of Mifeprex in the district court against the Oklahoma Commissioner of Health and the Executive Director of the Oklahoma State Board of Medical Licensure and Supervision (State). The Plaintiffs alleged, as a factual matter and without submitting evidentiary support, that H.B. 2684 will prevent some of Reproductive Services' patients from obtaining a medication abortion and will prevent others from receiving the medical treatment according to the most current scientific evidence and advances in medicine. The Plaintiffs challenged H.B. 2684 as violating rights guaranteed by the Oklahoma Constitution, including the right to due process by limiting women's rights to chooge to terminate a pregnancy, to bodily integrity, and to equal protection; violating the Oklahoma constitutional prohibition against special laws; and improperly delegating legislative authority. As stated in the first paragraph, only the last two challenges are properly before this Court.

11 7 While this case was pending before the district court, this Court, in an interim proceeding, enjoined enforcement of H.B. 2684 until its constitutionality "is fully and finally litigated." Okla. Coal. for Reprod. Justice v. Cline, 2014 OK 91, ¶ 1, 339 P.3d 887. Both sides then moved for summary judgment in the district court. The district court rendered judgment in favor of the Plaintiffs, finding that H.B. 2684 is a special law in violation of Article V, Section 59 of the Oklahoma Constitution The State appealed, raising only the questions of issue preclusion, unauthorized delegation of legislative authority, and special law under Article V, Section 59. We retained the appeal for disposition and asked for additional briefs specifically addressing the differences in H.B. 1970 and H.B. 2684.

IIL STANDARD OF REVIEW

18 Summary judgment settles only questions of law. Pickens v. Tulsa Metropolitan Ministry, 1997 OK 152, ¶ 7, 951 P.2d 1079, 1082. The standard of review of questions of law is de novo. Id. Summary judgment will be affirmed only if the appellate court determines that there is no dispute as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Id, Summary judgment will be re[1284] versed if the appellate court determines that reasonable men might reach different conclu-stons from the undisputed material facts. Runyon v. Reid, 1973 OK 25, ¶ 15, 510 P.2d 943, 946.

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Oklahoma Coalition for Reproductive Justice v. Cline, 2016 OK 17, 368 P.3d 1278, 2016 Okla. LEXIS 17, 2016 WL 704320 (Okla. 2016).

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