Following the first anniversary of Roe v. Wade being overturned, a new study reveals that Texas’ Heartbeat Act has saved nearly 10,000 babies since it was enacted.
The study conducted by reachers at John Hopkins University found that Texas saw 9,799 more births between April and December 2022, proving that pro-life bills are saving tens of thousands of lives.
“Although our study doesn’t detail why these extra births occurred, our findings strongly suggest that a considerable number of pregnant individuals in Texas were unable to overcome barriers to abortion access,” said Alison Gemmill, the lead author of the study.
During the 87th Legislative Session, Texas was among the first states to enforce a Heartbeat Act, which banned elective abortions once an unborn baby’s heartbeat is detected. After the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe, Texas outlawed abortion, except when the mother’s life is in danger. The trigger law made performing an abortion a punishable offense with penalties of up to life in prison and $100,000 in fines per violation.
The new research suggests Texas’ law has saved about 1,225 babies from the practice of abortion every month.
Despite this good news for pro-lifers around the country and Texas, researchers from John Hopkins claimed that pro-life laws are causing “pregnant people” harm.
“Abortion bans have real implications for birthing people, thousands of whom may have had no choice but to continue an unwanted or unsafe pregnancy to term,” said another lead author of the study, Suzanne Bell.
Bell asserted that due to these life-saving laws, most women seeking abortions are being financially burdened by choosing life. However, another study from May 2023 found that most mothers want better support rather than abortions.
In a retrospective survey of women who had received an abortion, 33 percent said their abortions were wanted, 43 percent as inconsistent with their values and preferences, 14 percent as unwanted, and 10 percent as coerced. In addition, 54 percent of women said they would have chosen life if they had more financial security, 42 percent would have given birth if they had more support from others, and 60 percent said they would have given birth if they had received either more emotional support or had more financial security.
Even with organizations like Mayday Health promoting abortion, the new study shows that Texas’ pro-life laws are saving thousands of lives.
