Many states have passed full abortion bans or significant restrictions on abortion since the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade, prompting some individuals to obtain abortions and abortion pills from states other than where they reside.
A total of 43 states prohibit “some abortions after a certain point in pregnancy.” Another 14 states, including Texas, have implemented a complete ban on abortion. In 11 states, abortion is protected by state law, although there may be some limitations placed on when one can be obtained. Another 11 states have passed statutes or constitutional amendments that establish a purported right to obtain an abortion, as well as laws and policies enabling the facilitation of the procedure.
Some states, such as New York, Washington, and Colorado, are passing laws that not only protect abortion but also shield doctors and practitioners who help provide online services, known as telemedicine, to women who live out of state, including women in anti-abortion states, according to The New York Times.
Such laws protect licensed healthcare providers who prescribe and mail abortion pills to patients in states where abortion is banned or otherwise restricted, purportedly undermining the laws in those states.
“You have states not just picking their own strategy but really trying to completely sabotage the governing efforts of their neighboring states,” claimed John Seago, president of Texas Right to Life, speaking with NYT.
Despite Texas implementing a full abortion ban, it has not been without challenges. Last December, a Texas judge issued an emergency order allowing a Dallas-area mother to get an abortion, as reported by The Dallas Express. Following the decision, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sent a letter to three Houston hospitals, stating that the judge’s order “will not insulate you, or anyone else, from civil or criminal liability for violating Texas’ abortion laws.”
The Texas Supreme Court subsequently overturned the lower court’s decision, prompting the woman to seek an abortion in a state that currently allows abortion, according to The Texas Tribune.
Because of these shield laws, Idaho, Kansas, and Missouri petitioned to join a Supreme Court case related to telemedicine and the mailing of abortion pills that will be heard next month, but the petition was denied.
“When you have states actively seeking to circumvent each other’s laws, that raises a very real legal problem that will stretch far beyond just the abortion sphere,” said Will Scharf, a candidate for Missouri attorney general, per NYT.
Prior to the latest shield laws, patients reportedly had to get abortion pills via telemedicine services from Europe, with the result being that it could take weeks for the pills to arrive. Patients sometimes received the pills at a point well beyond the recommended 12-week gestation period for taking those pills.
Lauren Jacobson, a nurse practitioner who writes prescriptions for abortion pills and supports the shield laws, told NYT, “We’re a free country. So let’s put that to the test. Here we are, and we’re not going to be intimidated, and we have our states backing us.”
