Texas Supreme Court Overturns Order Allowing Woman’s Abortion

In a huge blow to women’s rights, the Texas supreme court on Monday overturned a lower court’s ruling that allowed a pregnant woman to get an emergency abortion. 

The ruling from the Texas supreme court came as a shocker for women’s rights activists. The ruling came after the Texas Supreme Court ruled against Kate Cox, a 31-year-old mother of two, after she spent nearly a week seeking the court’s permission to get an abortion. She left Texas to obtain an abortion.

Kate Cox had a “life-threatening condition” and an abortion was important to prevent her death. She is more than 20 weeks pregnant with a fetus that has a rare genetic defect. 

Kate Cox was prevented from terminating her potentially life-threatening pregnancy by court. She was forced to leave Texas for an emergency abortion. If she fails to get an abortion, the genetic defect could cause a rupture to Kate Cox’s uterus. 

Kate Cox sued Texas last week and won the right to an abortion by a judge in Travis County. However, the Texas Supreme Court blocked the lower court’s order. 

Nancy Northup, the president and CEO at the Center for Reproductive Rights, said, “This past week of legal limbo has been hellish for Kate.”

Blow to women’s rights

Denying abortion rights to Kate Cox is a blow to women’s rights. She could not wait any longer and was forced to leave Texas to get an abortion. 

Greg Landsman, a Democrat from Ohio, said, “People will die because of these extreme abortion bans.” 

The Center for Reproductive Rights, the group representing Cox, said, “Kate Cox has been forced to leave Texas to get healthcare outside of the state.”

Her baby has a condition known as trisomy 18, which occurs when a baby has an extra copy of chromosome 18. This problem can cause miscarriage and low survival rate. Her fetus was diagnosed on 27 November with trisomy 18. 

Her lawyers have claimed that her lawsuit is the first such case since the United States supreme court last year reversed its landmark 1973 Roe v Wade ruling.