{"id":308885,"date":"2024-03-19T10:47:02","date_gmt":"2024-03-19T15:47:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.liveaction.org\/news\/?p=308885"},"modified":"2024-03-18T19:23:32","modified_gmt":"2024-03-19T00:23:32","slug":"texas-medical-board-loophole-abortion-exceptions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/texas-medical-board-loophole-abortion-exceptions\/","title":{"rendered":"Will the Texas Medical Board create a broad loophole for abortion ‘exceptions’?"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>

This week, the Texas Medical Board will begin<\/a> its 30-day rule making process to craft guidance regarding what the legal ‘exceptions’ are to the state’s pro-life law protecting most preborn children from abortion. Following a January petition from two Austin lobbyists for the law’s exceptions to be more clearly defined, the board will hold a public meeting on Friday, March 22.<\/p>\n

Current Texas law protects preborn children from abortion unless the mother’s life is determined to be in danger. There are no exceptions for rape, incest, or fetal diagnosis. Induced abortion is never truly medically necessary, even when the mother’s health or life are in danger. That’s because induced abortion is the intentional<\/em> and deliberate<\/em> killing of a preborn child. If the mother’s life were at risk, that child could be delivered alive through an emergency delivery, and the pregnancy ended without intentionally<\/em> causing<\/em> the child’s death. Emergency deliveries are not prohibited by Texas state law or any state law.<\/p>\n

In January, married attorneys and Capitol lobbyists, Steve and Amy Bresnen, asked<\/a> the board to give “clear guidance” on the situations in which women are allowed to intentionally kill their preborn children under Texas law. One of the suggestions the Bresnens proposed to the board was that the death of a pregnant woman “need not be imminent” to make her eligible to have her preborn child intentionally killed.<\/p>\n