The Republican governor of Mississippi wants to halt all abortion procedures in his state during the coronavirus crisis.
Mississippi currently has a ban on all elective surgeries that should also include abortions, according to Gov. Tate Reeves.
“We’re doing everything in our power, and have for many years, to make Mississippi the safest place in America for unborn children,” Reeves said at a press conference Tuesday. “We’ll take whatever action we need to, to protect not only the lives of unborn children but also the lives of anyone who may contract this particular virus.”
The state’s top doctor appeared with Reeves during the press conference and was less certain about the path the state will take with abortions during the coronavirus outbreak.
“That’s something I was not familiar with,” State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs said. “And before I would make any comments, I think we have to review the situation a bit more.”
Jackson Women’s Health Organization is the last operational abortion clinic in the state and responded to Reeves’s call by highlighting that “pregnancy is unique.”
“(Abortions) must remain available during this pandemic — particularly because every pregnancy is unique and can pose significant health risks,” said Kelly Krause, spokeswoman for a legal advocacy nonprofit organization that represents the clinic. “Indeed, this pandemic highlights the absurdity of medically unnecessary restrictions on abortion care, such as requirements for in-office counseling that could be effectively done over the phone.”
Ohio and Texas have also called for abortion clinics to delay procedures as the coronavirus continues to spread in the United States.
“No one is exempt from the governor’s executive order on medically unnecessary surgeries and procedures, including abortion providers,” Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said in a statement Monday. “Those who violate the governor’s order will be met with the full force of the law.”