2 Abortion Clinics Barred in N.Y.

A state judge ruled today that two abortion clinics planned for Albany and nearby Hudson should not be allowed to open, a decision that had been sought by a Roman Catholic bishop.

Justice Harold Hughes of state Supreme Court, New York’s trial-level court, ruled that the state Health Department had improperly granted approval to Planned Parenthood to open the clinics. He said the department should reconsider the application. The fight by Albany Roman Catholic Bishop Howard Hubbard to overturn the Health Department approval was the first such challenge by a Roman Catholic diocese in the state and possibly in the nation, according to state and church officials.