On the second anniversary of the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision, women who sued the state of Texas over exceptions to its abortion ban have declared reproductive rights as their top election issue. The Texas Supreme Court recently ruled against the plaintiffs in the case, Zurawski vs. State of Texas, which has only intensified their resolve to fight for abortion rights.
Amanda Zurawski, the lead plaintiff, has committed to dedicating all her time and energy to re-electing President Joe Biden. Her experience, along with those of other women in the lawsuit, has made abortion a defining issue for them as they head into the November election.
The lawsuit, represented by the Center for Reproductive Rights, included 20 women and two obstetrician-gynecologists. They sought clearer guidelines on what situations qualify for medical emergency exceptions to Texas’ strict abortion ban. However, the Texas Supreme Court rejected their challenge, stating that Texas law does not permit abortion even when a fetus has a severe abnormality. The court emphasized that it is up to doctors to determine when terminating a pregnancy is warranted under the law.
Samantha Casiano, one of the plaintiffs, shared her harrowing experience of being denied an abortion. She was pregnant and living in East Texas with her husband and four children when she learned that her fetus had anencephaly, a fatal condition. Unable to afford to travel out of state for an abortion, she carried the pregnancy to term and gave birth, only to watch her baby die within hours. This experience has galvanized her to ensure that everyone in her family votes in the upcoming election.
Casiano emphasized the importance of supporting abortion access, especially for her 3-year-old daughter and her nieces. She wants them to have the healthcare they need if they ever find themselves in a similar situation.
A survey published by KFF, a healthcare research and policy organization, revealed that one in 10 women consider the right to abortion the most important issue determining their vote. Five states—Colorado, Florida, Maryland, New York, and South Dakota—have abortion rights on the November ballot, with similar measures pending in six more states. However, Texas does not have an abortion measure on the ballot.
The state’s medical board recently issued updated guidance for doctors about its abortion ban but refused to provide a list of specific medical conditions that would qualify as an exception. Lauren Miller, another plaintiff in the Zurawski case, criticized the lack of clear exceptions, stating that they do not exist in practice. She emphasized that people’s lives are on the line and that bodily autonomy should not be forfeited to the state.
Miller, who is from Dallas, was excited when she learned she was pregnant with twins. However, at 12 weeks’ gestation, she found out that one twin had trisomy 18, a life-threatening condition that also threatened her health and the health of the other fetus. She ended up in the emergency room with severe vomiting and dehydration, but doctors would not perform an abortion to remove the affected twin. She had to travel nearly 800 miles and spend thousands of dollars to get care in Colorado. In March 2023, she gave birth to her son, Henry.
Miller highlighted the importance of every vote, noting that many elections are decided on very thin margins. Amanda Zurawski, the lead plaintiff, has vowed to dedicate all her time and energy to re-electing President Biden and Vice President Harris. She quit her job to become a campaign surrogate for Biden, expressing her fear of what would happen if Trump were to return to the White House.
Zurawski was denied an abortion after her water broke at 18 weeks, far too early for a baby to survive. She wanted to leave the state to end the pregnancy, but doctors warned her that she was likely to get an infection and should not be more than 15 minutes from a hospital. After her condition deteriorated, doctors performed an emergency abortion. Zurawski then developed sepsis and spent three days in intensive care. The Texas Supreme Court noted in its ruling that abortions can be allowed in cases where a patient’s water breaks before the point of fetal viability, as it often leads to infection. However, this is of little comfort to Zurawski, who now has to use a surrogate due to permanent damage to her reproductive organs.
Protecting reproductive rights has become the most important issue for Zurawski. She and the other plaintiffs are determined to ensure that their experiences are not in vain and that future generations have access to the healthcare they need.
Source: NBC News
