An abortion ban enacted in Texas four years ago may have resulted in an unexpected rise in infant mortality and congenital anomaly deaths.
Texas Heartbeat Act
In September 2021, Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed into law the Texas Heartbeat Act, also known as Texas Senate Bill 8 (SB8). This law prohibits all abortions in the state after the detection of a fetal heartbeat, which typically occurs around six weeks of pregnancy. Prior to the law, the state used to allow this abortion up to 22 weeks of pregnancy.
The law also enables citizens to sue anyone who gets involved in offering or receiving abortion services. The ban also applies to cases where the woman was impregnated as a result of incest or rape, except for medical emergencies. Meanwhile, it does not include exceptions for congenital abnormalities.
The aim of this policy was to reduce the number of abortions taking place in Texas. It was found that the birth rate rose in the state in 2022, with an additional 16,147 births and a rise in the rate of teenage pregnancies for the first time in 15 years.
Consequences of the Abortion Ban
In a previous study, experts hypothesized that the restrictions would result in an increase in infant mortality, although there was not enough data to support this claim. In a new research from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, it was found that there was a striking connection between the abortion ban and infant mortality. The findings were discussed in the paper "Infant Deaths After Texas' 2021 Ban on Abortion in Early Pregnancy."
Led by demographer and epidemiologist Alison Gemmill, the research team looked at how many infants died before their first birthday after Texas adopted the abortion ban. The study included newborns 28 days or younger and infants up to 12 months old.
The authors analyzed 94,720 recorded infant deaths in Texas and 28 other states between 2021 and 2022. During this time frame, the state has reported 255 additional deaths, corresponding to a 12.9% increase. Meanwhile, the rest of the US experienced a comparatively lower 1.8% increase.
Texas also had increased cases of babies born with congenital abnormalities by almost 23%. On a national level, the cases decreased by about 3%. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, birth defects are one of the main causes of infant deaths.
The study was published two years to the day after the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade and allowed more than a dozen states to outlaw almost all abortions. After considering the absolute increases in birth rates, it was concluded that the Texas Heartbeat Act was linked to an "unexpected" increase in infant mortality.
According to Gemmill, the abortion ban can have very serious and unintended effects on the lives and health of the community. Dr. Mary Rosser, director of Integrated Women's Health at Columbia University Irving Medical Center, also added that such restrictions can disproportionately impact marginalized populations like people of color and low-income families.
The study also suggests that the newborn or infant's death can have a ripple effect on a family, such as trauma and medical bills. On the other hand, health experts argue that the Texas Heartbeat Act can be too restrictive toward women who experience pregnancy complications.
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