The Texas Heartbeat Act already reportedly saved 70% to 80% of babies in the state according to abortion businesses themselves.
Life News said that abortion provider Whole Women's Health (WWH), which runs four facilities in Texas, admitted in an interview with the Texas Tribune that they had fewer patients, and had to function with fewer staff in the past two months since the Texas Heartbeat Act was implemented on September 1.
The Texas Heartbeat Act or Senate Bill 8 bans abortion on pregnancies six weeks and beyond where a fetal heartbeat has already been detected. It also empowers any citizen to file a lawsuit against those who conduct such abortions causing a string of controversies, including a lawsuit from President Joe Biden's Administration, and a law to counter it being pushed by the Democratic Party.
Accordingly, WWH's four facilities now run at 20% or 30% of its capacity as compared to pre-Senate Bill 8 days, such that only a fraction of clients do come to their clinics. WWH President and CEO Amy Hagstrom Miller said abortions have declined and they now anticipate an "uncertain future" until the courts have fully decided on the law.
The United States Supreme Court announced early this month that it will hear arguments against SB 8 filed by Biden and the decision for it has not come out yet.
"It's just becoming eerie. I think when people kind of know they're seven or eight weeks pregnant or further pregnant, they're not even calling anymore...a lot of folks are just, I think, going straight to calling Oklahoma and New Mexico and Louisiana," Miller said.
But Life News highlighted that abortion activists also admit not seeing women moving out of state to have their abortions. Women now in Texas are deciding to push through with their pregnancies and have their babies--a clear indication that Senate Bill 8 is working. Babies are actually "being saved from abortion deaths every single day."
However, San Antonio's maternal fetal medicine specialist Dr. Cece Cheng expressed disapproval against these indications on the effect of the law and called it a "disaster." Cheng, who performs abortions, highlighted the alleged importance the procedure plays in saving the lives of clients for medical reasons that now are impossible to do in the state due to SB8.
Cheng pointed out that all the facilities she performs abortion in, as well as, her private practice, have been negatively impacted by SB8.
"This is not patient care. This is disaster management. And it has no place in medicine," Cheng remarked in frustration.
"My only options now are to refer out of state or wait. I have to wait until my patient comes in with an emergency. Wait until the patient is bleeding profusely. Wait until there are signs of infection. Wait until the patient goes into labor, which for some may not ever happen," she added.
The impact of SB8 is similarly felt by abortion clinic giant Planned Parenthood (PP) through their Greater Texas branch that has now expanded its offerings to low-income clients. Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas (PPGT) announced in a press release dated November 15 that they are "expanding access to healthcare appointments for uninsured patients" in all their 10 clinics in the state as well as in surrounding communities.
The said services include birth control and various medical screenings. PPGT President and CEO Ken Lambrecht touted SB8 in the said news release for causing such a devastation in the reproductive healthcare of the state.
"For more than 85 years, Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas has supported healthy Texans. Access to reproductive healthcare is more important than ever with so many Texans underserved by Texas' healthcare policies and devastated by Texas' extreme abortion ban. This initiative expands access to healthcare services for the patients we serve," Lambrecht stressed.
The abortion giant is so affected by SB8 that they are providing financial assistance to clients who wish to travel to nearby states for abortion. They are also providing free so-called "empowerment kits" that contains a variety of items such as an "emergency contraception" and information on SB8.
PPGT Lead Clinician Elizabeth Cardwell explained that the alleged devastation caused by SB8 on their clients is the reason they are providing the service expansion.
"Texas' abortion ban (SB 8) takes decision-making away from patients in such a devastating way. These resources are intended to put some health information and assets directly back into the hands of patients without political interference. This is one way we can support patients as we fight to overturn Texas' abortion ban. True empowerment cannot happen until sexual and reproductive healthcare information and services, including abortion, are available to all Texans," Caldwell said.
