I couldn’t be more pleased to be with you here in Houston at this historic moment, June 24, 2023, the first anniversary of the Supreme Court’s overturning of the terrible Roe v. Wade decision.
Roe was not just wrong, it was catastrophic, leading to the destruction of 63 million unborn lives and harming countless women, men, and families. The Dobbs v. Jackson decision, handed down one year ago today, did away with half a century of deadly precedent.
Though the opinion is 78 pages, the result is simple. Nowhere in the Constitution is there a right to abortion — not in the text and not in this nation’s history and traditions. The authority to regulate abortion rests with the people and our elected representatives.
States can finally protect mothers and unborn babies from the tragedy of abortion. An unmitigated victory.
Now, we celebrate. We celebrate the thousands of innocent unborn babies saved from abortion in Texas and throughout the country, just in the last year.
Texas Is Well Prepared
Texas is well prepared for this historic moment.
First, the state’s pre-Roe laws protecting unborn babies from abortion, first passed in 1854, immediately went back into effect. Abortion providers were shocked.
Two years ago, the Legislature passed, and Governor Abbott signed, HB 1280, the Human Life Protection Act, to completely protect unborn babies from abortion beginning at conception.
The law went into effect last August and is the last stake in the heart of the abortion industry in Texas.
The Human Life Protection Act makes performing an abortion a first-degree felony offense, up to 99 years.
Second, the Texas attorney general can bring a fine of at least $100,000 for any violators.
Third, the law requires the mandatory loss of the medical license of a doctor, nurse, or pharmacist who participates in an illegal abortion.
CVS, Walgreens, don’t even think about dispensing abortion pills in Texas. It’s highly illegal, and you will be stopped.
As the Sun Travels Across Texas Each Day
Now, each day, the sun rises in Beaumont, travels across Texas, and sets in El Paso, and all 23 abortion facilities have ceased performing abortions.
- Three in Dallas,
- Two in Fort Worth,
- The facilities in El Paso, McKinney, Waco, and McAllen.
- The three in Austin,
- The three in San Antonio, and
- The eight abortion facilities in Harris and Fort Bend Counties,
All have stopped!
The abortion industry, which has done so much to harm mothers and babies, is crushed.
Like all abortion laws in Texas, women on whom abortions are performed cannot be prosecuted.
Also, our laws do not allow prosecution for the treatment of a miscarriage or ectopic pregnancy or other procedures to save the mother’s life.
The results have been dramatic. Since last August, reported elective abortions have plummeted from thousands per month to ZERO. And a relatively small number of abortions have been performed each month to save the mother’s life. Our laws are saving the lives of both unborn babies and pregnant women.
Babies Conceived in Rape
And the law protects precious babies conceived in the tragedy of rape and incest or with a life-limiting condition. We do not support adding an exception in tragic cases when the unborn child is conceived in crimes of rape or incest.
During the most recent session ending in May, there were 10 bills to add exceptions to allow abortions on babies conceived in rape and or terminal illness of the child or other reasons. All 10 bills were soundly defeated. Texas does not execute a child whose father was a rapist, or a child who is disabled or terminally ill, either born or unborn.
Removed from Office
For those prosecutors who categorically refuse to enforce Texas’ abortion laws, be warned. The Legislature passed HB 17 to allow you to be removed from office!
Funding for Alternatives
The Legislature appropriated, and Governor Abbott approved, a substantial increase to the already generous funding to assist low-income women, especially women with unplanned pregnancies.
Texas’ highly successful Alternatives to Abortion program will receive a $25 million increase in the current budget cycle and $140 million over the next two years, totaling $165 million, a 65% percent increase over the 2021 amount. Services help women carry their unborn babies to term but also continue for three years after the birth of the child.
By our count, Texas has 300 life-affirming pregnancy centers, maternity homes, and adoption agencies plus countless church-based ministries. That includes the wonderful Blue Blossom Pregnancy Centers, run by the Houston Coalition for Life, serving thousands of women each year.
For uninsured pregnant women with incomes up to twice the federal poverty level, the Legislature appropriated $2.35 billion for the state’s Medicaid program for prenatal, childbirth, and follow-up care for mothers and babies for 12 months. The Medicaid program pays for more than half of births in Texas.
The Legislature appropriated $446 million for other women’s health services.
Providing alternatives to abortion; that is the best answer to illegal abortion drugs trafficked through the mail.
Thanking Our Elected Officials
We thank Governor Greg Abbott, Lt. Governor Dan Patrick, Speaker Dade Phelan, and our pro-life members of the Legislature for passing life-saving legislation and prioritizing support for women and babies.
Texas cares about protecting unborn babies and their mothers from abortion but also about taking care of babies, women, and families long after birth.
Texas Alliance for Life’s Executive Director, Dr. Joe Pojman, gave this speech in front of Planned Parenthood’s former abortion facility in Houston on the first anniversary of the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision that overturned Roe v. Wade.