Texas Medical Board to discuss exceptions to state's abortion ban

The Texas Medical Board will meet this morning to reconsider current language on guidelines and exceptions to Texas' near-total ban on abortion.

AUSTIN (Nexstar) -- The Texas Medical Board will meet Friday morning to discuss exceptions doctors can use to perform abortions legally in the state.

In May, the Texas Supreme Court upheld that the medical exceptions in Texas’ abortion ban are sufficiently broad, and do not require doctors to allow their patients to approach death before intervening.

The TMB published new language in late March to clarify possible exceptions. The rule couldn't be adopted until after a 30-day public comment period and was expected to be voted on at a June meeting.

The proposal in March included a series of definitions for terms like “reasonable medical judgment,” “medical emergency,” and “major bodily function.” It also clarified that removing an ectopic pregnancy is not an abortion.

The March meeting emphasized that the decision to perform an abortion under medical exception is up to a physician, not a judge.

In the previously published guidelines, the TMB says that an abortion may only be performed in compliance with all provisions of the Texas Health and Safety Code. The physician must also document that the abortion was performed due to a medical emergency where the woman faced a significant risk of severe impairment or death, providing evidence that abortion was the only viable option to preserve her life.

According to reporting by The Texas Tribune, several physicians and OB/GYNs were concerned that the required documentation before a life-saving procedure would be too cumbersome and time-consuming, ultimately causing a delay in care.

The Texas Medical Board consists of 12 physicians and seven members of the public who the governor appoints. One member is an OB-GYN.

Ryan Chandler and Monica Madden contributed to this story.