Before the ink could dry on my column this week, things changed somewhat for the people of Texas, as it relates to this new anti-abortion law that Texas lawmakers passed. The U.S. Justice Department head is saying, “Hold up. Wait a minute.” To fight against this new law in Texas, the U.S. Justice Department is suing the Lone Star State.
The Justice Department is suing the state of Texas in an attempt to block the enforcement of the strict abortion law decried by the Biden administration as an untenable denial of reproductive health care for women. “The Texas act is clearly unconstitutional under long-standing Supreme Court precedent,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said. This “scheme to nullify the Constitution” is one that all Americans, whatever their politics, should fear, Garland added.
The civil action seeks a permanent injunction to keep the state from enforcing the law, claiming the state law is “invalid and preempted by federal law.”
For now, until further notice, the anti-abortion law that Texas lawmakers are so eager to enact is essentially “on hold,” until this lawsuit goes to court.
Let me be the first to admit, I’m a bit prejudiced when it comes to the question, “Should a woman have the right to choose whether she wants to be pregnant and carry a baby to full term? Should a woman have the right to choose to go after an education? Should a woman have the right to choose who she wants to marry? Should a woman have the right to choose when she wants to be intimate with her mate? Should a woman have the right to decide if she wants to have a job or not? Should a woman have the right to learn how to drive and get a driver’s license?
Believe it or not, in some still behind-the-times nations around the world some women can’t answer yes to any of those questions. They don’t have access to many of the rights we have.
They can’t choose who to marry. They are not allowed to go to school or to get a drivers’ license or vote. They can’t say no if their husband wants to be intimate. They can’t say no if the husband wants 8 children or 12 children. Sounds crazy, but it’s true.
Here in America, women can vote. Women can run for elected office. They can own their own homes and have their bank accounts. They can go to school and get an education. They can choose the man they want to marry and not wait for their father or brother to select a man for them. And, women in America, after a long hard fight could choose to end an unwanted pregnancy. That is up until now, in Texas. If some Republican lawmakers in some other states have their way, more states will join in with Texas and their new law that wipes out a Woman’s Right to Choose when it comes to getting an abortion.
As a Christian woman of Faith, I believe that abortion is wrong when it’s used as a contraceptive. I believe abortion is wrong when it’s used “lightly,” as if human life doesn’t matter. However, if having a baby means the mother of the baby might die in childbirth, a tough decision has to be made, but I think the option should be there. If a fetus is created from a rape, I think abortion should be an option if the mother absolutely knows she cannot fathom carrying her rapist’s seed inside of her. If a doctor tells a woman and her mate that the baby she is carrying is going to be born with dire health issues that will cost millions of dollars and that the child will never have a normal life, I think abortion should be a choice parents can make.
Just so you know, here’s what Republican lawmakers in Texas want to see happen as it relates to abortions and a woman’s right to choose:
As of September 1, the U.S. Supreme Court failed to intervene and block Texas’ six-week abortion ban. As a result, the law has gone into effect, and the vast majority of abortions in Texas are currently prohibited.
Back in May, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) signed legislation (S.B. 8) to ban abortion at six weeks of gestation, so early in pregnancy that many people may not even know they’re pregnant. For women still desperate to get an abortion, this could force them to travel long distances to get to an abortion clinic out of state or to use illegal means for getting an abortion.
The law has made national news as it comes with a new, cruel twist that allows anyone who is opposed to abortion – regardless of where they live or whether they have any association with a patient – to sue an abortion provider or anyone who helps a patient obtain an abortion, such as by providing financial help or transportation.
The law is intended to shut down most, if not all, legal abortion care in Texas. The consequences will be many. One major impact would be that any Texas resident unable to get an abortion in the state would have to travel considerably farther for services. This would add to the financial and logistical barriers many abortion patients already have to deal with and would likely increase the number of people unable to get the abortion they need.
The average one-way driving distance to an abortion clinic outside of Texas would increase from 12 miles to 248 miles, 20 times the distance. Put another way, that would increase the drive time by nearly 3.5 hours each way on average (if driving nonstop at 70 miles per hour) and could mean getting a hotel room for an overnight stay.
For the vast majority of Texas women of reproductive age, their next nearest abortion clinic would be in states that also have policies hostile to abortion (Louisiana for 60% of them and Oklahoma for 32%), where patients already struggle to receive care and are subjected to those states’ punitive and burdensome restrictions. Due to the many barriers to abortion care in Oklahoma and Louisiana—including a two-visit requirement in Louisiana and the fact that each state has very limited capacity to absorb an influx of new patients—some people traveling from Texas likely would need to go even farther than one state away for care.
Texas has a long list of abortion bans and restrictions actively on the books. Among other medically unnecessary and punitive directives, patients must receive state-mandated counseling that includes information designed to discourage them from having an abortion and then wait 24 hours before receiving care. Furthermore, people in Texas are banned from using telehealth to see their provider for a medication abortion, which means patients not only have to physically come into a clinic for care, but most have to make two separate trips.
Additionally, patients are banned from using their health insurance—either public or private—to cover the cost of their abortion except in extreme situations. And that’s not all. Patients are forced to undergo medically unnecessary ultrasounds. Patients who are minors have to obtain parental consent before having an abortion, and there is a 22- week abortion ban in effect. Furthermore, there are facility requirements that make abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy difficult to obtain. The state also requires abortion clinics to meet unnecessary and burdensome standards related to their physical building, equipment, and staffing.
Keep your eye on what Texas does. Other states with strong Republican leaders may try to duplicate the new anti- abortion laws that Texas has agreed to.
I say a woman should have the right to choose. It’s her body. It should be her choice. She has to live with her decision. I hope that the U.S. Justice Department wins its lawsuit against the state of Texas.
