The abortion ban that went into effect in Texas on Wednesday is a part of a national agenda to end abortion access in the country, according to the head of Planned Parenthood of Tennessee and North Mississippi.
“People in Tennessee have got to watch what’s happening in Texas really closely because Gov. [Bill] Lee and the General Assembly could very easily replicate S.B. 8. here,” said president and CEO Ashley Coffield.
The attacks on abortion access are relentless and have been ramping up in Tennessee, she said, citing a 2020 executive order from Lee that excluded abortions as an essential healthcare service.
Texas law, S.B. 8, which bans abortion at around six weeks or when there is cardiac activity, went into effect Wednesday. Abortion providers say this is before many women even know they are pregnant.
“This means as of today any pregnant person who lives in Texas will simply not be able to access an abortion,” Coffield said.
The law makes no exceptions for pregnacies resulting from rape or incest.
Unlike other six-week bans, Texas’ law turns over enforcement of the ban from the government to private citizens. The law allows anyone to sue abortion providers and anyone who helps a woman get an abortion. Those sued could have to pay up to $10,000 in damages. Coffield said the law was designed to “nefariously skirt” being struck down in court as unconstitutional.
Tennessee passed a “heartbeat bill” last year, but it was immediately blocked by a federal court from going into effect. However, the court allowed a portion of the law, which prohibits abortions based on a Down syndrome diagnosis or because of the gender or race of the fetus, to take effect.
The case is currently being reviewed by the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
Under current Tennessee law, abortions are illegal after viability (which is around 24 weeks), except in cases where a woman’s life is endangered. Among other provisions, Tennessee requires parental consent for minors seeking abortion and a mandatory 48-hour waiting period before women can receive an abortion. This measure was ruled legal by a U.S. Appeals court last month.
Most recently, the state passed a law requiring medical providers who provide abortions to bury or cremate the fetal remains. Coffield calls this a “hateful and intrusive measure.”
“These mandates were written by politicians and not doctors in an effort to shame people who need an abortion and make abortion providers jumo through more costly and unnecessary hoops to provide healthcare,” Coffield said. “These mandates just tell us that the legislature and Gov. Lee will stop at nothing to take our rights away.”
The U.S. Supreme Court is set to hear a case on Mississippi’s 15-week abortion ban later this year, which could overturn Roe v. Wade, Coffield said.
“Unfortunately, we’re starting to think about what it will take to help our patients find care outside of Tennessee if the worst happens,” Coffield said. “Without Roe, there is no protection for abortions in Tennessee. No one should have to prepare for losing access to essential healthcare or have the added burden of figuring out how to find an out-of-state healthcare provider because of politicians.”
