Texas abortion ban 3 years on: Forcing patients out of state, fueling 2024 debate
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Tens of thousands of Texans have traveled out of state for abortions since the state's ban took effect — more than from any other state, due to Texas' large population and the restrictiveness of the law.
Why it matters: The law, which preceded the Dobbs decision and took effect three years ago Sunday, has since been followed by similarly restrictive rules in states like Arizona and Florida. Together, they have drastically reduced access to abortion across the country.
The big picture: Clinics across Texas were forced to either close permanently or relocate to other states.
- "The health care implications are dramatic and devastating," says Marc Hearron, senior counsel at the Center for Reproductive Rights.
- Infant deaths surged 12.9% in Texas compared with a 1.8% increase across the rest of the country in the year after the state enacted its strict abortion ban, according to a study in JAMA Pediatrics.
- Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, who championed the ban, has claimed "thousands of newborn babies" were saved as a result of it and other Texas legislation.
Flashback: Texas' abortion law, the strictest state measure at the time it went into effect on Sept. 1, 2021, banned the procedure after a fetal heartbeat could be detected, around five or six weeks. A year later, a "trigger law" made performing an abortion a felony.
State of play: "Because clinician-provided abortion is almost impossible to access, people are traveling all over the country in order to get care," Isaac Maddow-Zimet, data scientist at the Guttmacher Institute, told Axios.
- Some 35,000 Texans did so last year, per data estimates from the Guttmacher Institute.
- An estimated 71% of abortions that took place in New Mexico last year were for out-of-state patients, mostly Texas residents, per Guttmacher's data.
- "Even when people are able to obtain abortion care, it's not necessarily a success story," Maddow-Zimet said. "It is something that they've had to really overcome."
Zoom in: Under Texas' law, a licensed physician can perform an abortion only if the pregnant person's life is at risk or if the pregnancy "poses a serious risk of substantial impairment of a major bodily function." The provider must also attempt to save the fetus.
- Critics of the ban have argued ambiguity over when exceptions are allowed has contributed to confusion and fear among doctors — who can be charged with a first-degree felony if they violate the law.
- But the state's Supreme Court declined in May to clarify when a medical emergency justifies an abortion.
- The Texas Medical Board provided guidance in June saying doctors don't need to wait until a pregnant person is at risk of death to provide an abortion, but that still didn't provide the clarity patients and doctors need, Hearron said.
- As a result, pregnant Texans with severe complications will likely continue to seek abortions outside the state.
Zoom out: Access to reproductive care is now a central topic in the 2024 presidential race, and one of former President Trump's key vulnerabilities.
- Kate Cox, the Dallas-area woman who generated national attention when she was blocked from getting an abortion after she discovered her fetus had a fatal genetic disorder, is helping rally Democratic voters on the issue.
- In a break with anti-abortion groups, Trump said Thursday that the six-week limit on abortions in his home state of Florida is "too short."
What to watch: Florida's six-week ban will be on the ballot in November, as will Arizona's near-total ban.
- That won't be the case in Texas, where the legislature must first pass a measure before voters can ratify it.
Go deeper: Where abortion is on the ballot in 2024
