Texas' fetal remains burial law shames women, abortion providers argue in trial
AUSTIN — For 45 minutes on Monday, Blake Howard Norton shared her miscarriage experience in a federal courthouse.
The trial over Texas' fetal remains burial law started Monday. Attorneys representing abortion providers who sued the state health department attempted to lay a foundation showing that the law, which requires fetal tissue from abortions and miscarriages to be buried or cremated, adds undue burden on women seeking abortion and clinics who provide them.
Norton, a licensed therapist and daughter of Austin Rep. Donna Howard, gave her testimony about a miscarriage she had in 2015. She was 11 weeks pregnant when a regularly scheduled ultrasound showed the fetus had no heartbeat, she said.
Her doctor recommended getting an abortion procedure as soon as possible to remove pregnancy tissue instead of waiting for her body to pass it naturally. Norton scheduled one at Seton Medical Center, a Catholic hospital in Austin. Right before she went into surgery, a nurse handed her a form to sign that outlined the options for fetal tissue disposal — burial by Seton, or private burial. She ultimately signed the form to get the procedure done.
Read more: https://www.dallasnews.com/news/courts/2018/07/16/texas-fetal-remains-burial-law-shames-women-abortion-providers-argue-trial
