Texas’ Abortion Ban Is Killing Our Mothers

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Another mother in Texas is dead.

Her name was Josseli Barnica. She was 28, a wife and mother of one. She’d wanted to be the mother of two. But on Sept. 3, 2021, Josseli suffered a miscarriage. Texas’ abortion ban, heralded by the state’s GOP and governor, ensured more suffering than could ever be measured.

Pregnant women dying is something the state has excelled at—exceptionally. In a nation where maternal morbidity has generally risen 11 percent since women’s right to body sovereignty was basically decimated by Texas’ GOP and governor in 2018, four years before Dobbs. But Texas holds the heart-shattering heights: maternal morbidity–dead mothers–has risen 56 percent, according to the most recent and available data.

Black women’s deaths rose 38 percent. Latinx mothers’ deaths rose nearly 20 percent.

Josseli was of Honduran descent.  

In a report published by ProPublica on Oct. 30, she was 17 weeks pregnant when she began miscarrying.

Texas’ complex law effectively prohibiting abortions had taken effect two months earlier, in July of 2021, almost a year before Dobbs. It mandated that physicians confirm the absence of a fetal heartbeat before performing any intervention unless a “medical emergency” was present.

It states that performing, inducing, or attempting an abortion is illegal unless the life or health of the pregnant patient is at risk. For this exception to apply, three criteria must be met. First, only a licensed physician may perform the abortion.

Second, the patient must face a life-threatening condition that poses a risk of death or “substantial impairment of a major bodily function” although the law does not define what constitutes “substantial impairment.”

And third, the physician must attempt to save the fetus unless doing so would increase the risk to the patient’s life or health.

Doctors at HCA Houston Healthcare Northwest froze when they realized she’d also developed a fatal–but common enough among pregnant or postpartum women–and absolutely treatable–infection.

They didn’t know if they would be violating the law if they undertook what they knew to be a life-saving action.

That question caused a hesitation that caused her to develop an infection that caused her to die.

While doctors at HCA Houston Healthcare Northwest declined to provide specifics about Barnica’s case, they stated,

“Our responsibility is to be in compliance with applicable state and federal laws and regulations,”

They emphasized that physicians must exercise their independent judgment.

However, in practice, the laws have led to a chilling effect, causing doctors to hesitate in providing necessary care due to the threat of prosecution, prison time, and the risk of losing their professional licenses.

In short, doctors in Texas have agreed to abandon the foundation of their field: First do no harm.

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