{"id":2532362,"date":"2026-01-10T16:42:02","date_gmt":"2026-01-10T21:42:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/colorado-ordered-to-pay-5-4m-after-abortion-law-blocked\/"},"modified":"2026-01-10T16:46:26","modified_gmt":"2026-01-10T21:46:26","slug":"colorado-ordered-to-pay-5-4m-after-abortion-law-blocked","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/colorado-ordered-to-pay-5-4m-after-abortion-law-blocked\/","title":{"rendered":"Colorado ordered to pay $5.4M after abortion law blocked"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fcolorado-ordered-to-pay-5-4m-after-abortion-law-blocked%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2532362&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>A federal court has ordered Colorado to pay $5.4 million in attorneys&#8217; fees to Becket,the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/coca-cola-under-fire-for-legally-questionable-racial-quota-system\/\" title=\"Coca-Cola Under Fire for Legally Questionable Racial Quota System\">nonprofit legal group<\/a> that represented Bella Health and Wellness,a Denver-area catholic crisis pregnancy center. The payment follows litigation challenging a 2023 Colorado law that barred health care providers from prescribing medications intended to reverse the effects of the first abortion pill. <\/p>\n<p>Bella Health sued the state the same day Governor Jared Polis signed the bill; a federal judge first issued a preliminary injunction and later a permanent injunction, finding the law unconstitutional and citing First Amendment protections. The court also concluded the state failed to show a compelling interest in banning the practice. During the litigation,bella Health reported that 18 babies were born after patients received abortion-pill-reversal treatment. Supporters of the law,including Sen. Janice Marchman, argued it targeted deceptive practices by anti-abortion centers and aimed to protect reproductive health care access.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Colorado ordered to pay $5.4M after abortion law blocked<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_2468615\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>(The Center Square)&nbsp;&ndash; <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/colorado\/\">Colorado<\/a> must pay back legal fees after it was sued for a law banning <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/abortion\/\">abortion<\/a> pill reversals, a <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/federal-courts\/\">federal court <\/a>ruled this week.<\/p>\n<p>The state will pay $5.4 million in attorneys&rsquo; fees to&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/becketfund.org\/\">Becket<\/a>, a nonprofit legal advocacy group, which represented a Denver-area Catholic crisis pregnancy center in the lawsuit against the state.<\/p>\n<div class=\"recommended-stories\">\n<h2>Recommended Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/policy\/healthcare\/4411705\/hhs-jim-oneill-canada-assisted-suicide-organ-donation-strange-new-horror\/\">HHS official calls Canada&#8217;s assisted suicide-fueled organ donation &#8216;strange new horror&#8217;<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/4408285\/trump-freeze-child-care-funding-democrats-affordability\/\">Trump freeze on billions of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-absolutely-wants-to-revoke-citizenship-of-somalis-who-committed-fraud-in-minnesota-leavitt\/\" title=\"Trump &#039;absolutely&#039; wants to revoke citizenship of Somalis who committed fraud in Minnesota: Leavitt\">child care funding<\/a> becomes political cudgel for Democrats on affordability<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/4410908\/house-to-vote-today-on-bill-to-renew-obamacare-subsidies\/\">House to vote on bill to renew Obamacare subsidies<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>Rebekah Ricketts, senior counsel at Becket and an attorney for Bella Health and Wellness, spoke with The Center Square in an exclusive interview regarding the ruling.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Colorado enacted a law banning doctors and nurses from offering life-saving care to women who have taken the first abortion pill but then decide to continue their pregnancies,&rdquo; Ricketts explained. &ldquo;A federal court blocked the law, holding that Colorado&rsquo;s law was unconstitutional.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>In 2023, the Colorado legislature passed a&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/beta.leg.colorado.gov\/17b18ac848c76917823a657abad2d5dd\">law<\/a>&nbsp;making it &ldquo;unprofessional conduct&rdquo; for Colorado health care providers to prescribe medications for women who were seeking medical help in reversing the effects of abortion drugs.<\/p>\n<p>State Sen. Janice Marchman, D-Loveland, sponsored the bill.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;In Colorado and across America, maternal outcomes are declining, and anti-abortion centers that use deceptive advertising to draw in vulnerable people seeking care and misleading them with biased and inaccurate information about abortions and contraceptives are only making the problem worse,&rdquo; Marchman&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.senatedems.co\/newsroom\/senate-approves-legislation-to-crack-down-on-deceptive-practices-by-anti-abortion-centersnbsp\">said<\/a>. &ldquo;Our bill will crack down on deceptive practices used by some of these bad actors, and is a proactive step we can take towards a future where Coloradans&rsquo; freedom to access essential and affirming reproductive health care is truly protected.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Just like Marchman, the law labeled centers like Bella Health and Wellness &ldquo;anti-abortion centers.&rdquo; Before the law, the center was providing abortion pill reversals. The same day Colorado Gov. Jared Polis signed the bill into law, the center filed its lawsuit against the state.<\/p>\n<p>Just a few months later, in October, a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction stopping that law. Two years later, the same judge issued a permanent injunction in favor of Bella Health and Wellness, citing its First Amendment rights.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;While the clinical efficacy of <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >abortion pill reversal remains debatable<\/a>, nobody has been injured by the treatment and a number of women have successfully given birth after receiving it,&rdquo; the August ruling&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/becketnewsite.s3.amazonaws.com\/20250801155320\/2025-08-01-Order-on-Motions-for-Summary-Judgment-in-Bella-Health-and-Wellness-v.-Weiser.pdf\">said<\/a>. &ldquo;The defendants have thus failed to show that they have a compelling interest in regulating this practice.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>That decision struck down Colorado&rsquo;s attempt to ban abortion pill reversals, which was the first law of its kind in the nation.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The court&rsquo;s ruling last August ensured that clinics like Bella can continue offering life-saving care to women and their babies across Colorado,&rdquo; Ricketts said. &ldquo;Colorado&rsquo;s attempt to deprive women of medical help was unscientific, unkind, and unconstitutional.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/restoring-america\/equality-not-elitism\/4411469\/mike-johnson-trump-abortion-hyde-amendment\/\">CAN MIKE JOHNSON THWART TRUMP ON ABORTION?<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>She added that, just during the litigation of the past few years, 18 babies have been born because of abortion pill reversal treatment provided by Bella Health and Wellness.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Those children may never have been born if the state&rsquo;s ban had gone into effect,&rdquo; Ricketts said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Colorado ordered to pay $5.4M after pill-reversal ban<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2869,"featured_media":2532363,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/AP22062806231580.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651,538],"tags":[4310,6024,33740,10691,4585],"class_list":["post-2532362","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","category-washington-examiner","tag-abortion","tag-colorado","tag-court-ruling","tag-damages","tag-lawsuit"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/AP22062806231580.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2532362","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2869"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2532362"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2532362\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2532366,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2532362\/revisions\/2532366"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2532363"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2532362"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2532362"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2532362"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}