Texas Republicans aim to further restrict abortions--here's how they might do it [View all]

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

Following the reversal of Roe v. Wade on June 24, a number of states, including Texas, had trigger laws on the books that have or will soon go into effect, in some places wholly outlawing abortion. However, there are still methods for Texans to circumvent these bans, including the use of medical abortion pills and traveling out-of-state for the procedure. Texas Republicans have pledged to target those mediums next once the legislature reconvenes in 2023.

Last year, Gov. Greg Abbott passed a bill banning the use of abortion drugs after seven weeks of pregnancy. This ban also seemingly prohibits such pills from being mailed to anyone in living in Texas. However, while this law exists, there are still ways to access such pills without a provider licensed in Texas, or even anywhere in the U.S.

For example, a person living in Texas could order the pills online from a provider outside of the U.S. and have the pills mailed to their home in an unmarked package. Patients might also have friends or family mail the medication from a state where it is lawful.

So how would enforcement of Texas' ban on abortion drugs work? Elizabeth Kukura, an assistant professor of law at Drexel University in Philadelphia, says it will likely require interference with mail delivery, which is regulated by federal law, not state law. "It's going to require a high degree of surveillance of people's personal communications, their Internet search history, even physical movements, in order to gather evidence that somebody has had an illegal medication abortion," she says.

https://www.chron.com/politics/article/How-abortion-pills-and-out-of-state-abortions-17287618.php