CHICAGO -- We are gratified for our clients -- some of Chicago's and the nation's most eminent obstetricians and gynecologists -- that Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens has acted expeditiously this afternoon to ensure the continued protection of all women's health in Illinois.

Staying the mandate in this case, and preventing enforcement of this irrational and punitive law, will allow the Supreme Court of the United States to consider our appeal in an orderly manner that assures fairness for all concerned.

Moreover, the stay eliminates the prospect that any physician in Illinois might be subjected to prosecution under the State's ambiguous law before the Supreme Court is presented with the opportunity to consider our request that the Court rule on the substantive constitutional and legal issues raised in the decision by the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. It also reduces the risk that seriously ill, pregnant women will be denied the medical care they need.