CNA Staff, Jan 30, 2024 / 11:30 am
The fertility rate in Texas rose by a statistically significant amount in the wake of the state’s pro-life laws, a University of Houston study has found.
Texas, which prohibits abortion except in the case of medical emergencies, was among the numerous states with “trigger laws” in place that went into effect upon the Supreme Court’s repeal of Roe v. Wade in June 2022. The state also enacted a “heartbeat” law that went into effect in 2021 and survived numerous legal challenges before Roe’s repeal. The law effectively prohibited abortion after six weeks of gestation.
A study out of the University of Houston’s Institute for Research on Women, Gender, and Sexuality found this month that the state’s fertility rate rose markedly after the heartbeat ban went into effect.
The “2022 overall fertility rate rose 2% in Texas” after the heartbeat bill, the researchers said in their study, released this month. The study used CDC data on 2022 birth rates in the state.