Texas Med Board Reviews Abortion Law Exceptions for Doctors
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The Texas Medical Board plans to discuss clarifications to the state’s abortion laws at a board meeting on March 22. The meeting comes after attorneys Steve and Amy Bresnen petitioned for clearer guidelines on when an abortion is legally permitted, following the Texas Supreme Court’s rejection of a medical emergency abortion case last year. Texas law currently bans nearly all abortions, with exceptions made only under specific life-threatening conditions or when there’s a serious risk of substantial impairment of a major bodily function.
Texas Medical Board to Interpret Abortion Law Exceptions
The Texas Medical Board is gearing up to clarify the language defining medical exceptions to the state’s stringent abortion laws. This discussion is slated for a forthcoming board meeting on March 22, as detailed in the Texas Register.
The agenda indicates that potential rule modifications concerning exceptions to abortion bans will be on the table. This development comes on the heels of a petition by Texas attorneys and lobbyists, Steve and Amy Bresnen, filed in January. The petition called for the board to provide “clear guidance” on permissible circumstances for abortion under the law.
The Bresnen’s action was prompted by the Texas Supreme Court’s denial of Kate Cox’s request to terminate her nonviable pregnancy last year, forcing her to seek abortion services outside Texas. Amy Bresnen expressed hope for positive movement in the future.
Texas’s stringent laws restrict almost all abortions unless a doctor deems it necessary to save a woman’s life or prevent substantial bodily impairment. The first law prohibiting the majority of abortions after six weeks of pregnancy was passed in 2021, and the repeal of Roe v. Wade in 2022 sparked a Texas trigger law on abortion.
Consequently, several women have been denied essential abortions for complex pregnancies, claiming they qualified for medical exceptions, but the ambiguity of the laws deterred their doctors from action.
Doctors risk losing their licenses if they violate Texas abortion laws. Texas’ Supreme Court asked the Texas Medical Board in December 2023 to offer more precise guidance on exceptions after rejecting Cox’s medical emergency abortion. Prior to the reversal of Roe v. Wade, Texas law allowed women like Cox to receive abortions in their doctor’s office or hospital.
In a March 13 letter to the Bresnen’s, the board indicated it would consider the language proposed in their petition. The Bresnens had also requested for the board to outline steps doctors could take to ensure that their decisions meet legal standards for medical exceptions. They advocated for the prohibition of complaints against doctors without concrete evidence of an illegal abortion.
If the draft language is accepted, a rule concerning medical exceptions could be published in the Texas Register, followed by a 30-day public review period, preceding the final rule.
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