Amendment would protect women and children from death by abortion pill trafficking.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Contact: Matt Hadro
[email protected]
March 10, 2023, AUSTIN, Texas — Chelsey Youman, Texas State Director for Human Coalition Action, announced support for the Wrongful Death Protection Act, introduced on Friday by Rep. Cole Hefner. The measure holds abortion pill manufacturers and distributors accountable, regardless of their location, for the wrongful deaths of women and children that result from illegally trafficking the abortion pill regimen to Texas.
Although abortion is illegal under the Texas state constitution and Texas law, out-of-state abortion industry actors continue to exploit enforcement loopholes, endangering women and ending the lives of children in the state.
In addition to starving her preborn child to death, the abortion pill regimen carries serious risks to the pregnant mother’s health. Chemical abortion is four times more dangerous to women than surgical abortion. A new analysis reveals that 35 percent of women who take the abortion pill end up in the emergency room within 30 days. Risks include hemorrhage, sepsis, and the psychological trauma of seeing the fully-formed, deceased child when he or she is expelled.
The Wrongful Death Protection Act protects women and children from these dangers and comprehensively holds abortionists – and those who aid and abet them – accountable for trafficking illegal chemical abortion drugs. The Act strategically overcomes historical enforcement challenges to these issues by extending long standing wrongful death protections.
Although Texas has led the way with landmark protections for children in the womb and support for vulnerable women, women and children continue to be preyed upon by the abortion industry.
Chelsey Youman, Texas State Director and National Policy Advisor for Human Coalition Action, reacted to Rep. Toth’s filing of the Women And Children Safety Act saying:
“Human Coalition cares for women in the middle of their heartbreak and trauma from taking the abortion pill regimen. They see first hand that women are the living victims of abortion and that the abortion industry systemically lies to them about what they will experience, feel and see when they take the pills.
“We are grateful Rep. Hefner is leading this strong measure. And hope the Legislature will continue its legacy of commitment to women and children by passing it. Human lives are lost every day we wait for this protection.”
In February, Human Coalition filed an amicus brief in support of a federal lawsuit aimed at halting the distribution of abortion drugs nationwide on the grounds that the FDA illegally approved the regimen more than two decades ago. Human Coalition highlights the tragic stories of women who were not told what was in store for them or their children in the process of a chemical abortion:
Many [abortion pill] clients report that they were not told about seeing fetal remains. Staff are told such things as:
“I had no idea that the pill was going to be as painful as it was.”
“I bled way more than I was told. The whole procedure was more painful than I was led to believe.”
“I saw the baby come out in the toilet . . . It was very traumatic. And no one told me I would see a baby. I didn’t know what to do . . . It felt wrong to flush the baby down the toilet.”
Women call Human Coalition nurses panicking in the middle of their abortions. The nurses support them over the phone, so they are not alone.
Abortion providers do not always return patients’ calls, even after complications arise. Human Coalition has served many women whose medication abortions failed and found themselves still pregnant. A few clients were unknowingly ectopic when they arrived at Human Coalition with abortion pills in hand. Human Coalition sonographers provided potentially life-saving ultrasounds. This is not what informed consent looks like.
And this is not what proper medical care looks like. Decades of medication abortion marred women and girls into living victims of abortion. It caused severe damage to their physical and mental health, including death. These grievous lessons were learned as the FDA failed to fulfill its duty under the law to ensure basic safety measures for women. The FDA callously dismisses women’s real experiences and traumas, wielding its incomplete data as a shield. But Human Coalition believes their voices matter. Women and children in the womb deserve better.
Bill author, Rep. Hefner said “we have enacted transformative pro-life laws in Texas, but more must be done. The deadly abortion pill regimen is everywhere, including in our state. Companies and smuggling networks are profiting from the barbaric death of children in the womb and neglecting the women who are harmed by taking these pills.
“I was elected to serve the people of this state and uphold public safety and human dignity, and today I am proud to introduce this bill to hold abortion pill traffickers accountable for the wrongful deaths of children in the womb and their mothers. They must not be allowed to escape
their direct responsibility for the wrongful deaths of Texans simply because they reside outside our state, and this legislation ensures that will not be allowed to happen.
About Human Coalition Action
Human Coalition Action is a public policy advocacy organization, advocating for preborn children and their mothers by assisting governing officials in advancing pro-life policies, informing voters about pro-life candidates, and supporting pro-life legal arguments in the courts.
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