The other week, the
health and safety of both mothers and their unborn babies was at the forefront
in a federal court ruling on a Texas law (House Bill 2) requiring abortion clinics
to operate under the same state standards as any other clinic offering out-patient
procedures. It would ensure that the
clinics basically operate under hospital-level standards. [read my previous blog posting dated March
14, 2014 – “Pro-Choice Advocates – More Interested in Access to Abortion
Clinics than Protecting Women”]
The court ruled in the
case of Whole Woman’s Health v. Lakey,
that the medical requirement advances Texas’ interests in safeguarding maternal
health and protecting women from sub-standard abortion facilities and
practices.
Pro-life leaders see it
as a victory for women and children. “Texas
has struck a decisive blow for women’s health and safety against a predatory
abortion industry,” said Americans United for Life President and CEO Dr.
Charmaine Yoest. “A largely
under-monitored, under-supervised, and secretive abortion industry tells women
‘trust but don’t verify that our clinics are clean and safe.’ No longer should women be abandoned to
self-serving and false assurances from an industry that puts profits over
people,” she added.
Pro-choice leaders call
the ruling a setback, saying it will leave as few as seven abortion clinics in
the state of Texas. “Not since before Roe v. Wade has a law or court decision
had the potential to devastate access to reproductive healthcare on such a
sweeping scale,” said Nancy Northrop, President and CEO of the Center for
Reproductive Rights. “We now look to the
justices to stop the sham laws that are shutting clinics down and placing
countless women at risk of serious harm.”
Justices stated in the
ruling that 9 out of 10 women in the state would still have access to an
abortion clinic within 150-miles of them.
The number of abortion
clinics in Texas is on decline from 40-clinics in 2012 to currently about 17. That decline began after the 5th Circuit
upheld another part of the 2013 law requiring doctors to have admitting
privileges at nearby hospitals.
According to a new Associated Press survey, fewer people
are getting abortions in almost every state.
Researchers found that abortions have declined in states where new laws
make it harder to have them, as well as in states with few restrictions. Abortions have been down since 2010 with an
over-all drop of about 12%. Pro-life
advocates say the drop is due to a shift in attitudes (increased awareness of
the humanity of the baby before it is born due to sonograms as their baby’s
first picture) with more women choosing to carry their pregnancies to term. Pro-choice advocates attribute the drop to
expanded access to effective contraceptives.
Rev.
Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.
Chaplain
(Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army
Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel
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