The Texas Law that restricts abortion resulted to at least 100,000 women who attempted to end their pregnancy without medical assistance. New study shows that there is a big possibility that the figure could rise to 240,000, as reported by Reuters.
The study that was released last Tuesday also found that women took drugs, herbs, teas and drugs bought in Mexico as their ways to end the unwanted pregnancies, the news outlet added.
The study that was conducted by the Texas Policy Evaluation Project established that poverty is the main reason of women's inability to obtain proper abortion care. Hiring the services of a medical specialist to perform an abortion is very expensive and because of that, many resulted to do it on their own, DailyMail Online reported.
The study came out a few days after the US Supreme Court agreed to assess the law again as it is clearly meant to shut down health centers that practice abortion. The issue has been a hot topic in the State of Texas since 2007 as various abortion rights groups have been protesting the law.
Planned Parenthood Federation of America's president, Cecile Richards stated that the "important new research paints an alarming picture of what the future may be like for woman across the country if the Supreme Court does not block this cruel law", according to Reuters' account.
The Republican-controlled law has already resulted to closure of many abortion clinics in the State as it imposes strict requirements. The regulation states that doctors who perform the termination must have admitting privileges at a local hospital. In addition, the medical facilities must have the same structure standards like that of a major surgical center, DailyMail Online added.
Meanwhile, the Reuters report also stated that Texas only has 19 abortion clinics today compared to 42 before legislature decided to pass the strict law. This has been confirmed by Planned Parenthood of Texas and Whole Woman's Health.
Whole Woman's Health's chief executive, Amy Hagstrom Miller, said that Texas lawmakers are forcing the clinics to close, and the situation is not going to help women who want to have an abortion as they will have to spend more of their money to travel to a different state that allows it.
"Texas women are forced to go to multiple and unnecessary visits at clinics that are now farther away, take more days off of work, losing income, find childcare, and arrange and pay for transportation for hundreds of miles," she explained, as reported by Reuters.
