Document ID: ./input/supremecourt_opinions/opinions/19pdf/18-1323_c07d.pdf
Page Number: 127

12 

JUNE MEDICAL SERVICES L.L.C. v. RUSSO 

GORSUCH, J., dissenting 

their existing practices.  On its way to predicting dire re-
sults, the plurality uncritically accepts that, if Act 620 went 
into effect, Doe 5 would be unable to obtain admitting priv-
ileges in Baton Rouge.  The plurality does so even though it
is undisputed that the sole remaining step for him to obtain
privileges is to find a doctor willing to cover for him—and 
that Doe 5 gave up on that effort after asking only one doc-
tor.  Similarly,  the  plurality  takes  it  as  given  that  Doe  2
would  be  denied  admitting  privileges  even  though  he 
dropped  a  pending  application  when  the  hospital  simply 
sent him a request for additional information.  Maybe these
physicians didn’t feel it was worth putting in much effort to
obtain admitting privileges given their chances of prevail-
ing in this lawsuit.  But it “taxes the credulity of the credu-
lous” to think they would have treated the process so lightly
if  their  livelihood  depended  on  securing  admitting  privi-
leges.  Maryland v. King, 569 U. S. 435, 466 (2013) (Scalia, 
J., dissenting).  Cf. ante, at 12–24 (ALITO, J., dissenting).

That  example  only  begins  to  illustrate  the  remarkably
static view of the market on display here.  Today’s decision
also appears to assume that, if Louisiana’s law took effect,
not a single hospital would amend its rules to permit abor-
tion  providers  easier  access  to  admitting  privileges;  no 
clinic would choose to relocate closer to a hospital that offers
admitting  privileges  rather  than  permanently  close  its
doors; the prospect of significant unmet demand would not 
prompt  a  single  Louisiana  doctor  with  established  admit-
ting  privileges  to  begin  performing  abortions;  and  unmet 
demand  would  not  induce  even  one  out-of-state  abortion 
provider to relocate to Louisiana.

All  these  assumptions  are  open  to  question.    Hospitals 
can  (and  do)  change  their  policies  in  response  to  regula-
tions.  Clinic operators have opened, closed, and relocated 
clinics numerous times.  There are hundreds of OB/GYNs 
with  active  admitting  privileges  in  Louisiana  who  could