Abortions Drop 60% In Texas
Under a Texas law that went into effect in September all abortions are banned after about six weeks. As legislatures swing into high gear around the country, abortion is also on the top of their agendas.
The Hill:
Texas Abortions Dropped 60 Percent After Heartbeat Law Took Effect
Abortions in Texas dropped nearly 60 percent in the first month the most restrictive abortion law in the nation was in effect, according to state data. The number of abortions performed in the state fell from 5,404 in August to just 2,197 in September. The Texas heartbeat law, S.B. 8, bans all abortions after fetal cardiac activity is detected, typically around six weeks of pregnancy, before most women know they are pregnant. (Weixel, 2/10)
The 19th:
Abortion Ban In Texas Still Causing Surges At Clinics In Nearby States
Clinics in states surrounding Texas are still struggling to absorb displaced patients months after the state’s six-week abortion ban went into effect. In Oklahoma, Kansas, New Mexico, Colorado, Louisiana and southern Nevada, clinics have all continued to see a dramatic surge in patients, representatives told The 19th, with some treating more than twice the number of people they saw before the Texas law known as Senate Bill 8 took effect in September. (Luthra, 2/11)
In abortion news from Virginia, Oklahoma, Florida, and Kentucky —
AP:
Virginia Senate Democrats Defeat 20-Week Abortion Ban
A Democrat-controlled Virginia Senate committee defeated a bill Thursday that would have prohibited abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy in most circumstances. The measure from Republican Sen. Amanda Chase failed on a party-line vote of 6-9. While a similar bill is alive in the GOP-controlled House, it has not been docketed for a hearing that legislative procedure would require take place by Friday. (2/10)
The Daily Beast:
Oklahoma Republicans Want To Track Women Considering Abortions
Oklahoma Republicans have introduced a bill to the state legislature to create a government-run database that tracks women considering abortions. Senate Bill 1167, known as EMMA—Every Mother Matters Act—would create a call center for pregnant women who want “pre-abortion” resources. The hotline, however, would only provide information about “support services, other than abortion,” like adoption, housing, and child care options. (Venarchik, 2/10)
WFSU:
A Democratic Lawmaker Wants Abortion Law Exemptions For Rape, Incest And Human Trafficking
A Florida lawmaker and childhood sexual abuse survivor is pushing back on a measure that would ban most abortions after 15 weeks. She says without exemptions for rape, incest and human trafficking survivors, the measure puts people who have suffered a serious trauma under the added pressure of a difficult deadline. Sen. Lauren Book, D-Plantation, has spent much of her adult life fighting against sexual abuse and working to protect survivors. She says the abortion measure moving through the Legislature is harmful. (McCarthy, 2/10)
The Courier Journal:
Kentucky Republican Files Sweeping Bill To Further Restrict Abortion
A Republican lawmaker has filed a far-reaching bill that would impose more layers of regulation on abortion in Kentucky, including new restrictions on medication used to terminate an early pregnancy. It also bans shipment of such medication by mail or other carrier, which is allowed in many states under a recent federal rule change lifting a requirement for an in-person medical visit. (Yetter, 2/10)
And from New Hampshire —
WMUR:
NH Bill Would Allow Men To Sue, Prevent Women Seeking Abortion
A highly controversial abortion bill was being debated at the State House in Concord on Wednesday. House Bill 1181 would allow a man claiming to be the father of an unborn child to seek an injunction to force a woman to maintain her pregnancy, potentially against her wishes. If the mother denies the man's paternity, the bill would require a DNA test. (2/9)
The Nashua Telegraph:
Emotional Testimony On Bill To Repeal State’s New Abortion Law
An effort to repeal the state’s new 24-week fetal protection law came to an emotional head at a legislative hearing Thursday with personal testimony given by women on both sides of the issue of abortion and from the medical community that it will likely lead to a loss of those providing care in the Granite State if allowed to stand. Public information on the sign-in for HB 1673 found 1,510 people in support of the bill and 364 opposed. (Tracy, 2/11)
New Hampshire Bulletin:
‘An Impossible Decision’: NH Mom Speaks Out On Fatal Fetal Diagnoses, State Abortion Ban
Michelle Cilley Foisy plans to tell New Hampshire House lawmakers Thursday about the death of her daughter Kayla, who would have turned 16 in December. When the story becomes almost impossible to tell, Foisy reminds herself she’s telling it for women who today don’t have the options she had when they learn late in pregnancy their baby will not survive outside the womb. That news came at 21 weeks for Foisy and her husband, Ryan. (Timmins, 2/10)
And President Biden says he's narrowed his choices for Supreme Court—
The Wall Street Journal:
Biden Says He Is Vetting About Four People For Supreme Court Vacancy
President Biden said he is vetting about four candidates for his coming Supreme Court nomination to succeed retiring Justice Stephen Breyer. “I’ve taken about four people and done the deep dive on them,” Mr. Biden told NBC’s Lester Holt in an interview, excerpts of which were released by the network on Thursday. He said his administration was conducting background checks to “see if there’s anything in the background that would make them not qualified.” (Parti, 2/10)
