15 hours Ago By Lucio Vasquez, The Texas Newsroom
As Texas continues to enforce one of the nation’s most restrictive abortion bans, New Jersey is launching a campaign aimed squarely at reproductive health providers in the Lone Star State, urging them to consider relocating to where their work remains lawfully protected. The campaign debuted last week with billboard ads placed in Houston and Dallas near major university hospitals and medical schools, in an effort to reach medical students, residents and practitioners affected by Texas’ post-Roe climate. New Jersey officials pushed similar initiatives in southern states in 2022, when Texas’ near-total abortion ban went into full effect after the U.
S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June of that same year.
“New Jersey’s goal is to make sure that people know that this is a safe place to practice full spectrum reproductive healthcare,” said New Jersey Health Commissioner Kaitlan Baston. The initiative comes amid growing concern from Texas doctors who say the state’s abortion laws are putting patients’ lives at risk. Under current law, nearly all abortions are banned , with no exceptions for rape or incest.
The only permitted exception — to save the life of the pregnant person — has been widely criticized by physicians for its lack of clarity. A 2024 study from Manatt Health found that nearly 30% of Texas physicians say they don’t have a clear understanding of the state’s abortion laws. In comparison, New Jersey codified abortion rights into state law in 2022.
The law ensures the right to abortion throughout pregnancy, without mandatory waiting periods, parental consent or insurance restrictions. New Jersey also allows advanced practice clinicians, such as nurse practitioners and certified nurse midwives, to provide abortion care. But in Texas, providers often delay care for pregnant patients facing medical emergencies, including ectopic pregnancies and severe infections, out of fear of criminal penalties.
According to the Gender Equity Policy Institute , the state’s maternal mortality rate shot up by 56% from 2019 to 2022 – before and after the ban went into effect. That’s compared to just an 11% increase nationwide during the same time period. “You’re looking at a patient and have to watch them deteriorate because you’re worried that you have to ask a lawyer if it’s legal to do what’s healthy and safe to save your patient’s life,” Baston said.
The ambiguity in Texas’ law led to the filing of Senate Bill 31 by Republican Sen. Bryan Hughes, the same lawmaker who authored the 2021 legislation that created the state’s six-week abortion ban. The proposed bill aims to clarify that doctors would not have to delay or withhold an abortion if doing so would increase the pregnant woman’s risk of death or impairment.
The bill is currently pending in the Senate’s state affairs committee. “Those policies that are impacting reproductive health, they make it impossible for physicians at times to make healthy and safe decisions for their patients,” Baston said. “It’s pushing providers out of those states.
” According to Manatt Health , 21% of physicians thought about or planned to leave Texas to practice in another state; another 14% said they wanted to leave but couldn’t due to personal reasons. The New Jersey campaign aligns with New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy’s recent budget proposal, which includes funding to support relocation and loan forgiveness programs for reproductive health professionals who move to the state.
According to Baston, the goal is to position New Jersey as a “beacon of safety” for healthcare providers. “We want to make sure providers know that we protect providers here,” Baston said. “We’re not necessarily stealing providers from other states.
We’re just letting them know this is a safe space to practice.”.
