Texas Is Using Coronavirus To Ban Abortion But Taking Away Women's Rights Won't Stop A Pandemic
While greater efforts should be made to stop the spread of coronavirus, that should not come at the expense of women's rights to get an abortion.
According to CBS News, the state of Texas is temporarily banning abortions for those who are not imminently faced with a situation where they need one to preserve their life or health. This comes after a federal judge blocked the temporary abortion ban.
According to CBS, "Those in violation face 'penalties of up to $1,000 or 180 days of jail time.'"
BREAKING Texas will be allowed to implement its ban on abortion amid the coronavirus pandemic, the Fifth Circuit… https://t.co/blBAsIIOxq— Kate Smith (@Kate Smith) 1585679690.0
This ban is part of an effort to limit "non-essential" medical procedures in Texas and clear up room and resources to focus solely on fighting the coronavirus.
While the coronavirus continues to spread in America, the country's attention is being placed more fully onto limiting the spread with hopes of eradicating it.
Texas already has some of the strictest abortion laws in the country. According to the ACLU of Texas,
"Texas's abortion laws are some of the most restrictive abortion laws in the country. Both the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Medical Association oppose some of Texas's abortion laws because excessive restrictions on abortion care jeopardize women's health. As a result of Texas abortion laws, there are not enough abortion clinics to serve us in the nation's second-most-populous state. About 900,000 reproductive-age women in Texas live more than 150 miles from an abortion clinic."
The shift to push for stricter abortion legislation is clearly something that policymakers and leaders in Texas want. While greater efforts should be made to stop the spread of coronavirus, that should not come at the expense of women's rights to get an abortion.
Unfortunately, it seems as though this temporary ban is more about stopping abortions and limiting women's rights then it is about stopping the spread of coronavirus since there is a fine for disobeying the ban that includes potential jail time.
Although this is just a temporary ban, it remains to be seen how women in Texas and organizations like Planned Parenthood plan to respond.
