New Orleans, La., Aug 20, 2021 / 08:53 am
A federal appeals court on Wednesday upheld a Texas law that prohibits a kind of dilation-and-evacuation abortion known as ‘live dismemberment’.
Dilation-and-evacuation abortions are most commonly performed in the second trimester of pregnancy. The ‘live dismemberment’ procedure banned by the law uses forceps to separate and thereby kill the unborn baby before removing its body from the womb. The Texas legislature has declared the procedure "brutal and inhumane."
The Texas law at issue— SB8— does not prohibit second trimester abortions. Rather, it adds a requirement prohibiting a doctor from using forceps to dismember the fetus while he or she is still alive. The law still permits dismemberment abortions that use suction.
Helen Osman, communications consultant for the Texas Catholic Conference, said Catholics can view this ruling as the state of Texas demonstrating “a greater respect for human life in an environment in which we have not yet been able to eliminate abortion.”