Abortion Providers Defend Order Opening Clinics in Texas

A federal district court’s order halting Texas’ attempt to shut down abortion providers as part of its emergency response to the new coronavirus should be allowed to take effect, abortion providers in the state told the Fifth Circuit Wednesday.

There is no doubt the Covid-19 pandemic has created a public emergency, the providers said in a brief to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. But there is no reason to allow Texas to use an executive order banning nonessential medical procedure to achieve its “longtime goal of banning abortion,” the providers said.

The providers are defending Judge ...