A Texas woman was forced to leave Texas state to seek an emergency abortion, after the Texas’s courts said she could not terminate her risky pregnancy. It was “outrageous” for any woman to leave state to terminate emergency pregnancy the US Precedent Joe Biden said in a White House statement.
Kate Cox, a 31-year-old mother of two from Dallas, is more than 20 weeks pregnant with a rare genetic abnormality, full trisomy 18, fetus which means it will likely die before birth or at most live a few days.
Doctors say failure to abort the pregnancy could cause a rupture to Kate Cox’s uterus, endangering her future fertility and her life.
Due to the stern abortion laws in Texas state, she sued the state last week — and initially won the right to an abortion by a judge in Travis County.
But unfortunately, the state’s Attorney General Ken Paxton speedily appealed to the Texas Supreme Court. Ken Paxton also warned to prosecute any doctor conducting the abortion.
On Monday Kate Cox left the Texas state to seek an emergency abortion — and hours later the Texas Supreme Court issued an order siding with the government and reversing the lower court’s decision.
The US Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right to abortion nationwide in June 2022, leaving states free to produce their own laws about the practice.
A Texas state “trigger” ban went into instant effect after the 2022 ruling, barring abortions even in cases of incest or rape. Texas also has a law that lets private nationals to prosecute anyone who performs or aids an abortion.
Texas doctors found guilty of performing abortions face up to 99 years in prison, fines of up to $100,000 and the cancelation of their medical license.
While the state does permit abortions in cases where the mother’s life is in danger, doctors have stated that in practice the phrasing is vague and unclear, leaving them exposed to legal consequences for exercising their medical decision.
