Texas Heartbeat Law Saves 10,000 Babies from Abortion: Study

The 2021 Texas heartbeat bill saved nearly 10,000 babies from abortion, according to new research from Johns Hopkins University.

A study published in the medical journal JAMA on Thursday shows between April and December 2022, when the Texas heartbeat bill was in effect, the Lone Star State saw 9,799 more births.

“Although our study doesn’t detail why these extra births occurred, our findings strongly suggest that a considerable number of pregnant individuals in Texas were unable to overcome barriers to abortion access,” said Alison Gemmill, a lead author of the study, according to LifeNews.com.

Two years ago, Texas became the first state in the nation since Roe v. Wade to successfully enforce a ban on abortion once a heartbeat is detected, which usually comes at about six weeks. The Supreme Court upheld the abortion ban in December 2021, six months before the nine justices overturned the court’s 1973 Roe decision. The number of abortions dropped by more than 10,000 nationwide in the first two months following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe, according to the Society of Family Planning. The group estimated more than 32,000 babies were saved within the first six months of the high court’s landmark ruling. Abortion rates dropped by 96 percent in states with the strongest restrictions.

According to LifeNews.com reporting on the new study from Johns Hopkins, researchers examined monthly live birth data from all 50 states to calculate how many lives were saved by the Texas heartbeat bill.

“Research suggests the Texas law saved about 1,225 babies from abortion every month,” the website reported. “These are unique, valuable children who will have the opportunity to grow and thrive, experience joy, develop relationships and contribute to society.”

Most Americans support restrictions on abortion and oppose leftist demands to keep abortion procedures legal up until birth. As Beth Whitehead reported for The Federalist, 72 percent of registered voters surveyed in a Harvard-Harris poll last summer “supported abortion restrictions at least as strict as a ban on abortions after 15 weeks, like the Mississippi law at issue in Dobbs.”

Another poll from Knights of Columbus with Marist last year also found 71 percent of Americans want abortion heavily restricted.

Tristan Justice is the western correspondent for The Federalist and the author of Social Justice Redux, a conservative newsletter on culture, health, and wellness. He has also written for The Washington Examiner and The Daily Signal. His work has also been featured in Real Clear Politics and Fox News. Tristan graduated from George Washington University where he majored in political science and minored in journalism. Follow him on Twitter at @JusticeTristan or contact him at [email protected]. Sign up for Tristan’s email newsletter here.

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