A study published in JAMA on June 29 shows nearly 10,000 more babies were born in Texas as a result of the Heartbeat Act between April and December 2022. Yay for babies!

In September 2021, the Texas Heartbeat Act went into effect. This law protects life by banning abortion when a preborn baby’s heartbeat can be detected, which could be as early as 5 weeks after a mother’s last menstrual cycle.

BREAKING: 9,799 Texan babies have been saved from abortion in just 8 months

Amazing example of the lives saved when we use the law to stop abortion.
When someone tells you banning abortion doesn't stop abortion, they are lying.

Ban abortion. Protect innocent human life. pic.twitter.com/GCyEX7spX0

— Lila Rose (@LilaGraceRose) June 29, 2023

Johns Hopkins’ report on the study included quotes from a lead author of the study, expressing a negative view of the news that more babies had been born to “birthing people” (mothers):

“The study’s findings highlight how abortion bans have real implications for birthing people, thousands of whom may have had no choice but to continue an unwanted or unsafe pregnancy to term,” says Suzanne Bell, PhD, MPH, assistant professor in the Bloomberg School’s Department of Population, Family and Reproductive Health and one of the study’s lead authors. “Notably, the majority of people who seek abortions live below or close to the poverty line. So many of these birthing people and their families were likely struggling financially even before the recent birth.”

Children cost money to raise, yes. But we should not be afraid of our children, but rather support each other in raising them.

Chances are High These Moms Won’t Keep Wishing They’d Been Allowed to Abort

If the findings of the Turnaway Study hold true, the vast majority of the women denied abortions because of the Texas Heartbeat Act will not regret having their child by the time the child is born, and the number keeps going down as of the child’s first birthday and fifth birthday. Only 4% of women denied abortions go on to report that they wished they had had an abortion by the child’s fifth birthday. See here:

One week after abortion denial, 65% of participants reported still wishing they could have had the abortion; after the birth, only 12% of women reported that they still wished that they could have had the abortion. At the time of the child’s first birthday, 7% still wished they could have had an abortion. By five years, this went down to 4%.

“I Got a Lot of Pressure to Abort”

This exciting news of new life reminds me of a quote I read in The Daily Signal today, from a teen mom:

“This culture of death that we’ve created surrounding abortion has not only led people to want to kill their children, to kill their children, but has also pushed parents who want to keep their children to [kill their children],” Kaylee Stockton, the teen mom, told The Daily Signal (emphasis original). She held her son in one arm and with the other held a sign reading, “This Teen Mom didn’t build her success off of murdering her child.”

…

“I think my biggest struggles as a teen mom was not the tiredness of it all, not just the normal things that motherhood brings, but I got a lot of pressure to abort,” she told The Daily Signal. “The constant comments that I couldn’t do it, that I was too young, that was my biggest thing.

Eye opening. I wonder, do pregnant women and teens in states where abortion is banned experience fewer suggestions that they can’t hack it, that they’re not ready, and that they need to kill their baby? I imagine so. I bet they feel freer to choose life for their babies, even though the circumstances are hard, because people are less likely to pressure them to abort their children if it’s illegal in their state. Perhaps this law is forcing people to become aware of resources to support life, rather than end it.

A New Effort to Protect Women

In other positive pro-life news, Students for Life of America has launched PregnancyEmergency.com, a resource for women facing ectopic pregnancies, a pre-natal diagnosis or other dire medical situations. This website allows women to chat with nurses and receive pro-life counseling. This effort is intended to help mitigate the possibility that doctors may avoid giving pregnant women life-saving care and then abortion advocates may blame pro-life laws for this negligence.

“It’s astounding to see amnesia take place among abortion-supporting ‘professionals’ who suddenly don’t know how to help pregnant mothers,” Kristan Hawkins said in a press release. She continued:

To help women get better answers than ‘get an abortion,’ Students for Life of America, at our Standing with You Initiative, along with Heartbeat International and Infinite Worth, have launched PregnancyEmergency.com, where better solutions then killing a baby are offered when an emergency is underway. This does not replace 911 in a crisis, but for mothers told that they can’t be treated for ectopic pregnancy, for example, it’s a great place to get medical facts, not pro-abortion spin.

May the fight to support life continue!

Aliya Kuykendall is a staff writer and proofreader for The Stream. You can follow Aliya on Twitter @AliyaKuykendall and follow The Stream @Streamdotorg.