Texas Governor Signs Bills Requiring Abortion Parental Consent, Restricting Third-Trimester Abortions

Main Category: Abortion
Article Date: 08 Jun 2005 - 11:00 PDT

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Texas Gov Rick Perry (R) on Sunday signed into law legislation that requires physicians to gain parental consent before performing an abortion on a minor and restricts doctors from performing third-trimester abortions except in certain circumstances, the.. AP/Boston Globe reports (Stengle, AP/Boston Globe, 6/6). Both measures were amendments to a bill (SB 419) reauthorizing the State Board of Medical Examiners (Blumenthal, New York Times, 6/6). Under the law, physicians are required to obtain signed consent from a parent or guardian before performing an abortion on a minor and failure to do so will result in a license violation. However, the measure allows for judicial bypass in cases of potential abuse or in cases where the minor is deemed mature enough to make the decision on her own. Previously, parents of minors seeking abortion had to be notified 48 hours before the procedure, but parental permission was not required. The law also includes language making it illegal for a woman to obtain a third-trimester abortion unless it is necessary to save her life or if the fetus has "severe, irreversible brain impairment." The law allows exceptions in cases where a woman is "diagnosed with a significant likelihood of suffering imminent, severe, irreversible brain damage or paralysis." Under the provision, any physician convicted of performing a third-trimester abortion in violation of the law will have his or her medical license revoked. Previously, doctors could perform late-term abortions if it was "necessary to prevent the death or a substantial risk of serious impairment to the physical or mental health of the woman" or if a woman's fetus had "a severe and irreversible abnormality, identified by reliable diagnostic procedures" (Kaiser Daily Reproductive Health Report, 5/18).

Perry Comments
Perry signed the legislation during a 90-minute ceremony at Calvary Christian Academy in Fort Worth, Texas, in front of about 1,000 supporters, the AP/Boston Globe reports (AP/Boston Globe, 6/6). Perry had e-mailed "thousands" of "pro-family, Christian friends" to join him at the bill signing, the Dallas Morning News reports. More than 250 protesters gathered outside, some protesting the antiabortion legislation and others saying the ceremony violates the separation of church and state, according to the Morning News (Leeder, Dallas Morning News, 6/6). "It has been a tragedy of unspeakable consequences that for decades activist courts denied many Texas parents their right to be involved in one of the most important decisions their young daughter could ever make -- whether to end the life that was growing inside her," Perry said at the ceremony, adding, "For too long, a blind eye has been turned to the rights of our most vulnerable human beings -- that's the unborn in our society" (AP/Boston Globe, 6/6). Perry also said, "We may be on the grounds of a Christian school today, but our message speaks to all who believe in standing up for the unborn, all who cherish strong, traditional families, regardless of party, ethnicity or creed" (Dallas Morning News, 6/6).

"Reprinted with permission from kaisernetwork.org kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Reproductive Health Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/repro The Kaiser Daily Reproductive Health Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

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