By EMILY WAGSTER PETTUSMISSISSIPPI Jackson — A federal appeals court panel ruled Tuesday that a Mississippi law that would close the state's only abortion clinic is unconstitutional. The three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued its 2-1 ruling in a case involving the state's 2012 law, which required physicians at the clinic, Jackson Women's Health Organization, to obtain admitting privileges at a local hospital. Physicians at the clinic applied for the privileges at Jackson-area hospitals but were unable to get them. Attorneys for Mississippi argued that if the clinic closed, women could get abortions in other states. “Today's ruling ensures women who have decided to end a pregnancy will continue, for now, to have access to safe, legal care in their home state,” Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights, said in a news release. Supreme Court ruling The appeals court panel ruled that a U.S.