House Bill 44 aims to clarify exceptions to Texas' strict abortion law

DALLAS - After Texas lawmakers passed a near-total ban on abortions with no exceptions, many doctors feared they would be committing a crime if they intervened. 

House Bill 44 is a bipartisan bill that would clarify the law. But some argue it doesn’t go far enough.

Life of the Mother Act

What we know:

Dozens of people testified before the Texas House Public Health Committee on Monday, mostly in support of HB 44.

The bill, authored by Fort Worth Republican Charlie Green, aims to provide clarity for doctors to know when they can step in during a pregnancy that has life-threatening complications.

"The Life of the Mother Act has brought together all of the major pro-life groups, doctors, hospitals, Republicans, and Democrats," Green said. "We know women’s bodies have been horribly injured because doctors and hospitals are afraid to provide abortions that could save their bodies. That’s because some of the language in our current law is not clear to doctors and hospitals."

The backstory:

For the past three years, since the near-total ban on Texas abortions went into effect, doctors and patients have faced uncertainty about the legal consequences.

The lack of exceptions led to a lawsuit by 20 women.

It was rejected by the Texas Supreme Court. However, the court also told the Texas Medical Board to provide clarity for doctors.

The medical board said that’s not its job, bringing the issue back to the legislature.

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What they're saying:

"This is not someone who is six weeks and driving to Planned Parenthood because they don’t want their baby. This is a woman who very much wants her baby at 20 weeks and having a medical emergency where she has lost her child. Even if it’s not fully dead yet, her child is in the act of dying and the only way she can survive to parent her other children is to accept that death, protect her life and that is what the bill seeks to strike a balance of," said Jennifer Alman, the executive director for the Catholic Conference of Bishops.

The other side:

Some in the hearing worried that HB 44 would allow a loophole in the abortion ban.

Some of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit also argue the bill does not go far enough because it doesn’t account for fatal abnormalities of the fetus.

Sarah Harrison was pregnant with twins. One of them had a fatal condition.

"What if I got pregnant with twins again and I have to leave again? The trauma is real. It is real. It’s intense. Of course, I feel scared to get pregnant in this state," she told lawmakers.

"This bill does not include fetal abnormality. It does not include rape. But it does include a bipartisan approach to try to address the challenges. I heard you guys say not sick enough. This bill does an important thing that does say you do not delay treatment. This bill does try to address that delay in time," said Rep. Ann Johnson of Houston.

What's next:

Lawmakers are still hearing testimony on the bill.

There is also a companion bill in the Texas Senate.

There appears to be enough bipartisan support to get it across the finish line.