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24 Attorney’s General filed an amicus brief supporting President Joe Biden‘s attempt to block Texas’ controversial six-week abortion ban.
“Today, virtually no one can obtain an abortion in Texas,” the brief reads. “In order to obtain abortion care, patients now have to travel out-of-state, which makes abortion for many people too difficult, too time-intensive, and too costly.”
The group of Attorney General’s say that the restrictive legislation is not in line with the Supreme Court’s 1973 decision in Roe v. Wade.
Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed the six-week fetal heartbeat bill into law in May. The bill restricts women from terminating unwanted pregnancies after a heartbeat has been detected. A private citizen can file a lawsuit against anyone attempting to help an individual obtain an abortion.
The law went into effect on September 1.
The United States Supreme Court, in a 5-4 vote, refused to block the measure before it went into effect.
The Attorney General believes that the law could burden healthcare systems in other states.
“In New Mexico, for example, an influx of patients from Texas has already strained provider resources and made it more difficult for New Mexico residents to receive timely care,” the group wrote. “Similar impacts are being seen or expected to be seen in other Amici States, including California, Colorado, Illinois, and Nevada.
On Tuesday, the Department of Justice filed an emergency request to block the law temporarily.
“The act is clearly unconstitutional under longstanding Supreme Court precedent,” said Attorney General Merrick Garland. “The United States has the authority and responsibility to ensure that no state can deprive individuals of their constitutional rights through a legislative scheme specifically designed to prevent the vindication of those rights.”
The amicus brief, filed by Massachusetts’ attorney general in addition to 23 other Democratic attorneys general, was filed Sept. 15. The attorneys general from California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, and North Carolina also joined in on the amicus brief.
