‘This isn’t moderation — it’s moral cowardice masquerading as compromise.’

Austin, TX – In an unbelievable and shameful turn of events, major pro-life groups in Texas have betrayed the preborn and offered their support for a bill that will undermine the state’s current Human Life Protection Act, opening the door for every type of abortion in Texas.

Deceptively named the “Life of the Mother Act,” HB44 and its companion bill, SB31, both seek to remove phrasing from the original Human Life Protection Act that will, without question, allow for elective abortions in a state where children in the womb are currently protected. 

Wording in the original act allows for an abortion if the mother has “a life-threatening physical condition aggravated by, caused by, or arising from a pregnancy that places [her] at risk of death or poses a serious risk of substantial impairment of a major bodily function.” 

In 2024, after legal challenges to the language, the Texas Supreme Court unanimously upheld the Human Life Protection Act, emphasizing the importance of the phrase “life-threatening” in the interpretation of the exception. 

HB44, sponsored by 36 Democrats – many of whom were deemed “Legislative Champions” by Planned Parenthood – seeks to remove the phrase “life-threatening” from the current exception. By doing so, any “physical condition,” even those that are not life-threatening, only need be  determined by a doctor to pose either a risk of death or a substantial impairment of a major bodily function to allow an abortion.

The new bill offers no definition of “a major bodily function” and only requires one doctor to make the determination. 

“This bill is a direct assault on the most vulnerable among us,” says Troy Newman, President of Operation Rescue. “It doesn’t just weaken pro-life laws – it attempts to nullify justice and erase hard-won protections for preborn children. Any lawmaker or so-called Pro-life Organization who supports this measure is complicit in turning back the clock to a culture of death. This isn’t moderation — it’s moral cowardice masquerading as compromise.”

Currently, Texas Right to Life, Texas Alliance for Life, the Texas Conference of Catholic Bishops, and Human Coalition have all sweepingly supported this pro-abortion bill. Support from Texas Alliance for Life seems especially hypocritical, as the organization defended the Human Life Protection Act quite recently, boldly stating, “Claims by critics and naysayers that the Texas abortion law is causing women to die are completely baseless.” Suddenly, that’s not the case. 

To add insult to injury, both HB44 and SB31 are sponsored by pro-life Republicans. Senator Bryan Hughes, in particular, is known for having a stellar pro-life record. Texas Lt. Governor Dan Patrick has also played a prominent role in fast-tracking the bill, including it in his “top 40 priorities” for this legislative session. 

At least two other pro-life groups, Grassroots America – We The People and Texas Values, had the courage to speak up about this bill, as did a prominent Texas pro-life attorney. 

During his forceful testimony against HB44, the attorney stated, “I’m shocked to see a bill so clearly aligned with the Democratic Party’s abortion agenda gaining steam in the Republican-controlled House and legislature. Texans didn’t vote for more abortions on demand. For decades we fought to overturn Roe and Casey and reclaim Texas’s right to protect the unborn. Dobbs was a generational win. But now, we’re in danger of squandering it – voluntarily. It would be a catastrophic unforced error.”

This bill is pending in the Texas House Public Health Committee, which is made up of seven Republicans and six Democrats. Please call or email all seven Republicans and urge them to stop this bill by voting NO in committee. Time is of the essence. The committee vote could happen on short notice!

Please contact these Republicans now:

This report may be republished with inclusion of the following acknowledgement: “This article was originally published by Operation Rescue, a leading pro-life, Christian activist organization dedicated to exposing abortion abuses, demanding enforcement, saving innocent lives, and building an abortion-free America.“