Texas to Require Burial or Cremation of Aborted Fetuses

Cremation Funeral Industry News July 11, 2016
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Texas to Require Burial or Cremation of Aborted Fetuses

Article originally publish by: CBS News

Texas intends to require aborted fetuses to be buried or cremated come September, adding new abortion regulations after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the state’s restrictive clinic laws.

Republican Gov. Greg Abbott ordered state health officials to propose the changes, his office said Thursday, which were quietly put out for public comment this month.

Similar fetal remain rules in Indiana are on hold after a federal judge granted a temporary injunction last week against that state’s sweeping new anti-abortion law. That bill, signed in March by GOP Gov. Mike Pence, more notably also banned abortions due to genetic abnormalities.

Texas, however, isn’t waiting for lawmakers to pass a bill regarding fetal remains. Abbott had been talking with the Texas Health and Human Services Commission for months about making a change, Abbott spokeswoman Ciara Matthews said.

State agencies in Texas are allowed to adopt some rules on its own without legislative approval. Although the rules are expected to take effect in the fall, Matthews said Abbott hopes the Legislature will “enshrine” the rules into law next year.

“Governor Abbott believes human and fetal remains should not be treated like medical waste, and the proposed rule changes affirms the value and dignity of all life,” Matthews said.

Read full article from CBS News