Texas state Sen. Bryan Hughes, the author of the state heartbeat law, praised the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday for once again allowing the life-saving legislation to remain in effect.
KLTV reports Hughes, R-Mineola, said the court’s decision affirms that states have the right to protect unborn babies from abortion.
“By leaving in place the Texas Heartbeat Law today, the Supreme Court affirmed two fundamental conservative principles: the sanctity of life and the sovereignty of states,” Hughes said.
The heartbeat law has been saving as many as 100 unborn babies from abortion every day since it went into effect Sept. 1. It prohibits abortions once an unborn baby’s heartbeat is detectable, about six weeks of pregnancy, and most abortions are done after six weeks.
On Friday, the Supreme Court dismissed President Joe Biden’s lawsuit against the law. While the justices ruled that the Texas abortion businesses challenging the law can continue with their lawsuit, they also allowed the pro-life law to remain in effect.
Hughes described the ruling as a long-overdue victory for life.
Click Like if you are pro-life to like the LifeNews Facebook page!
“Today’s ruling preserves the heart of the law and ensures that doctors who perform illegal abortions are held accountable, and that little unborn babies will get a chance to live this beautiful life,” he told KLTV. “This is a total victory for life, and it is long overdue.”
Texas is the first state to be allowed to enforce a heartbeat law because of a unique provision that allows private individuals to enforce the law by filing lawsuits against abortionists and others who help them abort unborn babies with beating hearts.
Typically, state governments enforce pro-life laws and, when the laws are challenged, judges can block the states from enforcing them through a temporary injunction. However, the Texas law leaves enforcement up to individual people.
This unique provision and a legal technicality about the parties involved in the lawsuits were the issues that the Supreme Court ruled on Friday, not the abortion ban itself.
Pro-life leaders estimate the law has saved thousands of unborn babies from abortion since it went into effect three months ago. In 2020, about 54,000 unborn babies were aborted in Texas, and about 85 percent happened after six weeks of pregnancy, according to state health statistics. That equates to about 100 unborn babies being saved from abortion every day.
Texas abortion facilities reported a huge drop in abortion numbers during the first 30 days when the pro-life law was in effect, according to research from the University of Texas at Austin. Abortion facilities reported 2,164 abortions in September 2021, down from 4,313 in September 2020, according to the research. That equates to 2,149 babies’ lives.
While some Texas women are traveling to other states to abort their unborn babies, many others who otherwise might have had abortions are choosing life instead. Pro-life advocates are helping these mothers and their babies, providing financial aid, material resources and many other forms of support.
Along with passing the heartbeat law this year, Texas state lawmakers also increased support for pregnant and parenting mothers and babies, ensuring that they have resources to choose life. This included $100 million for the state Alternatives to Abortion program as well as additional funding for the Healthy Texas Women program.
