Council Takes a Stand Against Texas Abortion Law

Council Member Mike Martinez (by John Anderson)

Earlier today, Austin City Council passed a resolution that supports the full repeal of Texas’ abortion law, House Bill 2.

The resolution – sponsored by Council Member Mike Martinez and co-sponsored by CMs Laura Morrison and Bill Spelman — makes note of consensus among the medical community — including the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the Texas Medical Association, and the Texas Hospital Associations — that HB 2 places women’s health in danger; the higher costs and travel times associated with clinic closures as a result of HB 2; the Legislature’s deep cuts to family planning services and the fact that HB 2 has curtailed not just abortion services but preventive care, such as well-woman exams, cervical cancer screenings, STD testing and treatment, and birth control services.

“Access to full-spectrum reproductive health care in Texas is diminishing as a result of decisions made by our state leadership,” said mayoral hopeful Martinez in a statement following the passage. “Austin’s facilities have been especially strained for resources as people travel from all over Texas to obtain care. As local clinics struggle to provide safe, compassionate care to a growing number of clients, it’s evident that HB 2 has nothing to do with women’s health or safety.”

Clinic closures statewide mean more Texans will be forced to travel to Austin to receive care which places an “additional strain of resources” on local services. Clinic closures in Austin will have a “detrimental impact” to the availability of local services, the resolution reads. To date, the Austin Whole Woman’s Health clinic, which offered preventive care as well as abortion services for more than a decade, shut its doors on July 31 as a result of HB 2. Roughly 20 clinics around the state have closed because of HB 2’s restrictions.

The law requires that pharmaceutical abortion follow an outdated Food and Drug Administration-approved protocol, forces abortion doctors to obtain hospital admitting privileges within 30 miles of each clinic where they perform the procedure, and bans abortion at 20 weeks of pregnancy. Lastly, it compels clinics to make costly building changes in compliance with the same standards as ambulatory surgical centers.

The implementation of the final part of HB 2, previously expected to take effect on Sept. 1, was delayed after a federal judge ruled the law unconstitutional. The fate of HB 2’s ASC rule now rests with the conservative 5th Circuit Court of Appeals. If enacted, it is expected to halt services at all but seven clinics in the state. Only one clinic is anticipated to remain in Austin.

The measure, passed unanimously on the consent agenda, also directs the city manager to conduct a study analyzing the impact of HB 2 on Austin residents and present those finding before the Public Health and Human Services Committee by Nov. 18. This isn’t the first time Austin City Council has taken a stand for reproductive rights. Earlier this year, Mayor Pro Tem Sheryl Cole and Spelman and Morrison advocated for the Women's Health Protection Act, a federal law that would prevent states from restricting abortion services.

“While provisions within this bill are still being battled in the courts, I believe it’s important to make the city of Austin’s position clear that we do not support legislation limiting access to reproductive health care," said Martinez. "I hope other local leaders around Texas will join us in our fight against these repeated attacks against women’s health."

Austin joins Houston in publicly opposing HB 2 – in August, Houston Mayor Annise Parker and eight city council members similarly called on the Legislature to immediately repeal the state's harsh abortion law.

Read Austin's draft resolution against HB 2 here.