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Joe Biden defends women's constitutional rights following Texas abortion law
The BBC reported, US President Joe Biden has condemned a new law in Texas banning abortion from as early as six weeks and vowed to defend women's constitutional rights.
Biden said, the "extreme" law "blatantly" violated rights and would "significantly impair" women's access to healthcare.
According to the BBC, the Supreme Court has refused to block the new law in Texas.
It said, the law bans abortions after detection of what anti-abortion campaigners call a foetal heartbeat - a point when many women do not know they are pregnant.
The BBC mentioned, the so-called Heartbeat Act also gives any individual the right to sue doctors who perform an abortion past the six-week point.
It mentioned, doctors and women's rights groups have heavily criticised the law, which is one of the most restrictive in the country, and took effect after the conservative-leaning Supreme Court failed to respond to an emergency appeal by abortion providers.
Joe Biden, in his statement, said his administration would "protect and defend" the constitutional rights established under Roe v Wade and "upheld as a precedent for nearly half a century".
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The BBC noted, he was referring to the 1973 case in which the Supreme Court ruled US women have the right to an abortion until a foetus is viable - that is, able to survive outside the womb. This is usually between 22 and 24 weeks into a pregnancy.
It added, house Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the Supreme Court had "delivered catastrophe to women in Texas" while New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said it was a "direct assault on the rights of women" across the country and would need a "national mobilisation" to fight it.
Rights groups, including Planned Parenthood and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) who had requested that the Supreme Court block the legislation, say they will not give up the fight.
Source: BBC
