A coalition of 24 state attorneys general has filed an amicus brief calling on the Supreme Court to prevent Texas from keeping an across-the-board ban on abortions in place.
“A lower court has already blocked Texas’ blatantly unconstitutional abortion ban once and the Supreme Court must do the same, ultimately upholding the decades-long constitutional right to an abortion in this country,” said Virginia Attorney General Herring, a member of the AG coalition. “Texas’ ban is part of a disturbing wave of incredibly restrictive abortion laws, being passed around this country, that deprive a woman of the right to make decisions about her own body and her own life. During my time as attorney general, I have been dedicated to protecting a woman’s right to choose and I will not back down now.”
According to the amicus brief, S.B. 8 not only imposes a ban on almost all abortions in Texas in open disregard of the Supreme Court’s precedent, but also attempts to thwart judicial review and insulate Texas from accountability by purporting to create only a private enforcement scheme. Texas created a structure within its state court system that requires courts to award at least $10,000 as well as injunctive relief to claimants who bring cases against providers and those who “aid or abet” such constitutionally protected care.
As such, the law threatens potential liability for anyone who so much as gives a patient a ride to an abortion provider.
In accordance with the ban, providers in Texas have largely stopped providing abortion care to their patients. This has affected not only patients in Texas, but clinics and patients in states like California, Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Nevada, and Oklahoma.
In New Mexico, in particular, an influx of patients from Texas has already strained provider resources and made it more difficult for New Mexico residents to receive timely care.
“Most patients now must travel out of state, which makes abortion for many people too difficult, too time-intensive, and too costly,” the brief states. “Consequently, many will now be forced to carry unwanted pregnancies to term, resulting in negative health and socioeconomic consequences for both them and their children. And the harms caused by S.B. 8 are rippling well beyond Texas into other states, as people are forced to seek care elsewhere, in many places overwhelming capacity and threatening our own residents’ access to care.”
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