Calay News
A decision adopted after a lawsuit filed by thirteen women in the conservative territory of Texas, United States, has opened the possibility of performing abortions in cases of serious health complications during pregnancy or when the fetus would not survive. The ruling was issued by Judge Jessica Mangrum in Austin and was disclosed by the Center for Reproductive Rights (CRR), an NGO that supports the plaintiffs.
In a hearing in July, the magistrate heard the cases of five affected women who sought to clarify the “medical exceptions” for the practice of abortions. According to Mangrum, a doctor can provide abortion services to pregnant people under a medical exception if she believes in good faith and in consultation with the patient that the medical conditions pose a risk to her life, health, or fertility. The temporary ruling states that Texas cannot prohibit abortion when there are complications of the pregnancy that pose risks of infection or make the continuation of the pregnancy unsafe for the woman, or when there is a fetal condition in which the fetus is unlikely to survive.
This temporary ruling will be in effect until the merits of the lawsuit are resolved at trial next year. It is worth mentioning that the right to abortion in the United States was recognized in 1973 through the historic case Roe v. Wade, but last year the conservative-majority Supreme Court reversed that decision. Since then, more than a dozen states, including Texas, have enacted abortion bans, penalties, or restrictions.
In Texas, a doctor who performs an abortion can face up to 99 years in prison, fines, and the loss of a medical license. In addition, the state allows citizens to sue anyone involved in an abortion. Local authorities fear that the medical exceptions could be interpreted arbitrarily, which has led several doctors to refuse to perform abortions, even in emergency situations. The current ruling provides clarity to doctors about when they can perform abortions and allows them to use their medical judgment in such situations, according to the CRR.
