Texas Woman Denied Emergency Abortion Leaves State for Procedure

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Facts

  • Kate Cox, the 31-year-old pregnant Texas woman denied an emergency abortion by the state Supreme Court over the weekend, has left the state to receive the procedure, the Center for Reproductive Rights announced Monday. 1
  • Later Monday, the Texas Supreme Court, which Friday overruled a lower-court ruling by issuing a temporary stay preventing Cox from receiving an abortion, ruled that Cox’s lawyer and doctor didn’t prove she qualified for an exception to the state’s abortion law. 1
  • Previously, Texas District Judge Maya Guerra Gamble last Thursday granted Cox permission to have an abortion under a narrow exception of the state's law, which prohibits an abortion after six weeks and was adopted after the US Supreme Court (SCOTUS) overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. 2
  • Gamble ruled in Cox's favor after hearing that her 20-week-old fetus is fatally impaired and carrying it to term could damage Cox's chances of having another child. She has received emergency treatment four times since her current pregnancy began. 3
  • In addition to the six-week ban signed by Republican Gov. Greg Abbott in 2021, Texas also has a law — which was triggered by the SCOTUS decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization — making it a felony for a doctor to perform an abortion unless the mother’s life is in danger. 4
  • Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton accused Gamble of being an "activist" judge and threatened to prosecute any medical personnel involved in providing a woman an emergency abortion. 3

Sources: 1NPR Online News, 2PBS NewsHour, 3Daily Mail, and 4CBS.

Narratives

  • Right narrative, as provided by Townhall. There's no reason to legally challenge this law. Texas is a leading state in being innovative and bold in protecting the rights of children, including the unborn, as evidenced by the results – abortions are down. There are also pregnancy centers that can be accessed as important resources to help mothers. The state must appeal this ruling and win.
  • Left narrative, as provided by NBC News. This law is cruel and strips a decision that should belong to a woman and her family to give to the state. Cox needs this procedure and the judge was right to grant this exemption. The courts must clarify the conditions when an abortion is permitted and obviously include Cox’s situation within those parameters. This is another sad commentary on the decimation of reproductive rights after the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
  • Nerd narrative, as provided by Metaculus. There's a 5% chance that elective abortion will be banned nationally in the United States before 2030, according to the Metaculus prediction community.