The Texan women saved by the Supreme Court

Here's what the Texas abortion ruling really means

Demonstrators celebrate at the Supreme Court.
(Image credit: REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque)

The Supreme Court ruled Monday that a Texas law known as HB2 poses a "substantial obstacle to women seeking abortions," placing an "'undue burden' on their constitutional right to do so." The decision is a major victory for abortion rights advocates — but more directly, it's a major victory for individual women.

Not yet, of course. Right now the legacy of HB2 still means that 900,000 Texans of child-bearing age live a 300-mile round trip from their nearest abortion provider — six to eight hours of driving there and back, plus the cost of a tank of gas, and likely at least one lost day of work. And abortion, rather famously, is one of those things that can't be long put off. We may not know their names or faces, but there are many women living in Texas today for whom SCOTUS's decision has already come too late.

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Emily L. Hauser

Emily L. Hauser is a long-time commentary writer. Her work has appeared in a variety of outlets, including The Daily Beast, Haaretz, The Forward, Chicago Tribune, and The Dallas Morning News, where she has looked at a wide range of topics, from helmet laws to forgetfulness to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.