Texas state health department announced the proposed rules requiring the burial or cremation of aborted fetuses and fetal parts will take effect on Dec. 19.
Once the rules are implemented, abortion clinics, hospitals and other health care facilities that perform abortion will no longer be able to dispose of aborted babies in sanitary landfills and will be mandated to spend for their burial or cremation regardless of the period of gestation.
The new rules have sparked outrage from pro-choice groups.
“The state agency has once again ignored the concerns of the medical community and thousands of Texans by playing politics with people’s private healthcare decisions," Heather Busby, executive director of NARAL Pro-Choice Texas, said.
Pro-abortion group Center for Reproductive Rights addressed the Texas health department in a letter, saying the new rules “impose heavy burdens on women seeking abortion care and do not offer a proportional benefit.”
“The proposed amendments will burden abortion access and miscarriage management in a number of ways, including by stigmatizing women who elect to end a pregnancy or experience pregnancy loss,” the letter stated further.
Others pointed out that burial or cremation can cost up to several thousand dollars.
Texas health department officials explained that burial and cremation costs will be shouldered by the health care facilities. The new rules will also “carry out the department's duty to protect public health in a manner that's consonant with the state's respect for life and dignity of the unborn.”
Kristan Hawkins, president of Students for Life of America, lauded the amendment, saying it honors the “humanity” of aborted babies and gives them the dignity they deserve.
"It’s no surprise the abortion industry is adamantly opposed to this law. They would rather sell those body parts for money or find some other non-humanitarian way to dispose of the remains, she told LifeSiteNews. “We hope that this law helps our nation to see the humanity of the child in the womb and also helps women who are contemplating abortion to understand more fully the unique gift of a child.”
Abortion facilities like Planned Parenthood have been accused of selling baby parts for profit. In 2015, several undercover videos were released showing negotiations for aborted fetal parts.
One of them shows Dr. Savita Ginde, vice president and medical director for Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains, talking about how to harvest baby parts without getting caught and discussing how it is better to price items per body part instead of the whole fetus.
“I think a per-item thing works a little better, just because we can see how much we can get out of it,” she said.
Watch the video below.
