AUSTIN, Texas — A lower court order that allowed abortion clinics to continue to perform abortions in Texas was blocked by the Texas Supreme Court. This decision came after the landmark 1973 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that established a constitutional right.
It wasn’t immediately clear if the Texas clinics that had resumed abortions just days before Friday’s ruling would stop services again after the ruling late Friday night. A hearing is planned for later in the month.
The confusion that has erupted since Roe V. Wade was overturned in Texas is evident by the whiplash experienced by Texas clinics when they turned away patients and rescheduled them.
A Tuesday order from a Houston judge had given some clinics the assurance that they could temporarily resume abortions until six weeks after conception. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton immediately asked the state’s highest Court, which has nine Republican justices to temporarily suspend that order.
Marc Hearron, an attorney for the Center for Reproductive Rights, said that the laws were confusing, unnecessary and cruel after Friday’s order was made.
After Roe v. Wade was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court, Texas clinics — a state with nearly 30 million inhabitants — have stopped performing abortions. Texas had an abortion ban in effect for 50 years, even though Roe was still in force.
Lawyers representing Texas clinics gave a copy Friday’s order to the court, but it was not immediately accessible on the court’s site.
Patients and abortion providers across the country are struggling to navigate the changing legal landscape surrounding access and laws.
A law in Florida banning abortions after 15-weeks was put into effect Friday. This came after a judge declared it a violation to the state constitution. He said that he would temporarily block the law and sign an order blocking it next week. The South could be affected more as Florida has greater access to abortion than other states.
In Kentucky, abortion rights were lost and gained in a matter of days. The so-called trigger law, which imposed a near-total ban, went into effect Friday. However, a judge blocked it Thursday. This means that the state’s two abortion providers can now resume seeing patients.
Legal wrangling will continue to create chaos for Americans seeking abortions. Court rulings could change access in a matter of minutes and new patients from outside the state will overwhelm providers.
Even if women are not allowed to have an abortion in a state other than the one they live in, there may be less options for them to terminate their pregnancies. The possibility of prosecution could follow them.
Planned Parenthood of Montana has stopped offering medication abortions to patients who reside in states that ban them “to minimize the potential risk for providers and health center staff as well as patients in the face of rapidly changing landscapes.”
Planned Parenthood North Central States offers the procedure in Minnesota and Iowa. It tells its patients that they must use both the pills in the regimen in a state which allows abortions.
Since 2000, abortion pills have been the most popular method of ending a pregnancy. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved mifepristone as the main medication used for medical abortions. It is combined with misoprostol (a drug that causes cramping and empties the womb), to form the abortion pill.
“There is a lot of confusion, concern, and that providers might be at risk. They are trying to limit liability so they can care for people who need it,” Dr. Daniel Grossman, who heads the research group Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health, University of California San Francisco.
Planned Parenthood North Central States spokeswoman Emily Bisek said that they had to inform patients in an “unknown” and “muddled” legal environment that they could legally perform the medication abortion. This requires two drugs to be taken 24 to 48 hours apart. She stated that most patients who come from states where there are no restrictions on abortions will opt for surgical abortions.
Access to abortion pills is a major battleground. The Biden administration is preparing to argue that states cannot ban medication approved by the FDA.
Kim Floren, who runs an abortion fund called Justice Empowerment Network in South Dakota, stated that the development would limit women’s options.
Floren stated that the purpose of all laws is to scare people. He referred to states’ bans against abortion and telemedicine consultations for medical abortions. These laws are difficult to enforce, but Floren said that they depend on people being scared.
Friday’s South Dakota law will make it a crime to prescribe medication for abortions without a South Dakota Board of Medical and Osteopathic Examiners license.
Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall said that his office is looking into whether individuals or groups could be charged with helping women travel to outside-of-state abortion clinics.
Yellowhammer Fund, an Alabama-based organization that assists low-income women to cover travel and abortion costs, announced it will be suspending operations for two weeks due to a lack of clarity in state law.
“This is a temporary suspension, and we’re going figure out how legally we can get you money, resources, and what that looks like,” stated Kelsea McLain (Yellowhammer’s director of health care access).
Laura Goodhue is the executive director of Florida Alliance of Planned Parenthood affiliates. She said that staff members have seen women drive from Texas to Florida without stopping or making appointments. Women over 15 weeks old were asked to provide their contact information. She promised a callback if a judge temporarily blocks the restriction.
However, it is possible that the temporary order will not be in effect and that the law could come back into force later. This would create additional confusion.
