The Madison Surgery Center's six-member board of directors voted unanimously Friday to open a new second-trimester abortion clinic.
The clinic will be housed in the Madison Surgery Center at 1 S. Park St. The center is a joint venture by UW Hospital and Clinics, UW Foundation and Meriter Hospital, whose boards recently approved the clinic's opening.
State Sen. Glenn Grothman, R-West Bend, said the fight to stop the clinic's opening is not over.
I don't think any person of morality can rest while the UW hospitals are doing abortions on 22-week-old babies,"" he said.
Matt Bowman, legal counsel for the anti-abortion Alliance Defense Fund, said ADF is prepared to take ""prompt legal action"" in response to the clinic's opening.
According to Bowman, the Associated Press recently received documents indicating many employees have exercised their right not to participate.
""It seems like a large majority of employees do not want the UW to force their clinic to do abortions,"" he said.
Proponents of opening the clinic have said women in Madison need access to reproductive health care, especially in situations where a woman's life might be at stake.
Lisa Brunette, UW Hospital and Clinics spokesperson, said there is no set date for the clinic's opening and it is ""very unlikely"" there are already scheduled abortions.
The clinic will open in response to Dr. Dennis Christiansen's decision to retire in December. Christiansen had performed second-trimester abortions at his private practice in a Madison Planned Parenthood clinic.
The Madison Surgery Center abortion clinic plans to perform approximately 120 to 130 abortions per year, according to Brunette.
Planned Parenthood will continue to perform abortions for women who are up to 19 weeks pregnant.
