What To Know About Abortion In Texas Now

Visit any Texas abortion access website, and it will give you a version of the same banner announcement: Abortion is illegal in Texas, but you still have options.

Texas’ blanket ban has not eliminated access to abortion—just displaced it. Care has been forced out of state and into a statutory gray area, and each new law adds to the complexity of an already difficult-to-navigate legal landscape. One thing remains consistent across these statutes: seeking abortion care is not illegal. The act of performing or helping to obtain one is criminalized, but those who have received abortion care are not named as criminal defendants during ongoing litigation. This nuance isn’t widely advertised or understood, even by those directly impacted by the ban.

Pregnant Texans seeking an abortion are now required to understand the implications of overlapping bans, civil liability, and legal ambiguity that shifts risk onto patients and those who help them. But receiving essential medical care shouldn’t require a law degree. Strip away the legal excess, and there is a narrow path through Texas’ legal barriers to get an abortion. Here’s how Texans are still finding access.

Step One: Understanding Laws and Shield Laws

In 2021, Senate Bill 8 made it illegal for medical providers to perform abortions anywhere in the state of Texas after six weeks from conception. SB 8 specifically targets medical providers, abortion clinics, and in-state telehealth networks—but does not allow patients to be sued. Additionally, this law relied on civil rather than criminal prosecution, and notably, Texas could not sue any of the named targets. SB 8 relied on private enforcement, under which only individuals and private citizens could file lawsuits to enforce compliance—a watchdog model.

When the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, a “trigger law” was immediately enacted in Texas. This made abortion illegal from conception, overriding SB 8. Unlike the civil enforcement model, the trigger law relies on criminal charges filed by the state itself, with penalties including up to life in prison. However, the trigger law still does not criminalize patients. Shortly after the Dobbs ruling, Texas revived additional older statutes that criminalized abortion, most of which targeted emergency medical care.

In 2023, a lawsuit initially filed by 5 women who were denied emergency care and 2 OBGYNs (Zurawski v. Texas) forced the state to formalize an exception. Previously, doctors scared of jail time, six-figure fines, and loss of licensure were required to wait until a patient was critically ill to provide care. ProPublica reported that at least three women died from complications after being denied medically necessary abortions. In a ruling, the Texas Supreme Court declared that “Texas law permits a life-saving abortion. A physician cannot be fined or disciplined for performing an abortion” that they deem necessary.

On December 4, 2025, House Bill 7 went into effect. It bans providers from other states from mailing abortion-inducing medication to patients in the state of Texas. Legislators intended for HB 7 to obligate other states to comply with Texas’s total abortion ban. However, out-of-state providers are protected by shield laws, which prevent them from being charged when their home state does not ban abortion. New York has actively protected one of its physicians from Texas-based litigation. Additionally, HB 7 relies on the same watchdog model as SB 8—private citizens are allowed to sue providers and helpers, but the state is not.

The result is a patchwork of overlapping bans and exceptions, bringing us to the question: What’s still legal, and where?

Step Two: Weighing Out-of-State Travel vs. Mail-Order Medication

It is still legal for Texans to receive an abortion—just not from a provider in Texas. This leaves those seeking care with two primary options: travel to another state for a procedural abortion, or receive a prescription from an out-of-state telehealth provider for a medication abortion.

The closest abortion clinics to Texas are in Wichita, Kansas, and Las Cruces, New Mexico. Research from the Guttmacher Institute, an organization that studies sexual and reproductive health policy, shows that Texans seeking abortion care now travel hundreds of miles on average, often crossing multiple state lines to reach a clinic. Those who opt to travel must consider a variety of factors: time, distance, work leave, childcare (60 percent of Texans seeking abortions are parents), and, perhaps most importantly, cost.

Hotel rooms, gas or airline tickets, and clinic fees add up quickly—especially in states that require a waiting period upon arrival.

“People often have to choose between paying their bills or paying for abortion care,” Fund Texas Choice, a practical support network, told the Texas Signal. “The average cost of traveling out of state for care is over $1,000, which doesn’t even cover the cost of the procedure.”

Abortion access funds like Fund Texas Choice offer Texans help with lodging and procedural costs. However, their resources are finite. The Guttmacher Institute estimates that over 28,000 Texans are now traveling out of state annually for abortion care, and assistance funding is running out. Private organizations cannot carry the weight of a public need on their own, and the result is an access option limited only to those who can afford it.

The alternative is medication abortion obtained from out-of-state providers operating under shield laws. Medication abortion is often the most cost-effective option for those seeking care. Anti-abortion organizations and faith-based crisis pregnancy centers often falsely advertise that it is illegal to receive abortion pills by mail. For example, the Metroplex Women’s Clinic in Arlington explicitly states on its website that “if you reside in Texas, you cannot have a telehealth appointment with an abortion provider, even if they live in another state.” It goes on to say, “When your pregnancy test comes back positive, it can be easy to panic. Don’t let fear make the final decision for you. Get the care and support you deserve at Metroplex Women’s Clinic.”

However, there are other relevant factors Texans should know about. Texas pharmacies cannot dispense prescriptions for mifepristone or other abortion-inducing drugs, even when they are lawfully prescribed by an out-of-state provider. Medication abortion obtained through telehealth relies on mail delivery and careful timing: the FDA indicates that the pill is only proven to be effective for up to 10 weeks after conception, and patients must rely on mail delivery. Additionally, those receiving abortion pills via mail have not received a physical examination by their abortion provider, so it may be difficult to confirm gestation time.

Another concern: telemedicine sites often warn users about digital privacy risks, noting that search history, emails, text messages, and social media posts can be monitored or retained. Though it is not illegal to receive abortion care, electronic communication records have been used in abortion-related investigations to implicate providers and facilities under HB 7’s private-enforcement framework.

In both procedural and medication abortions, time is the defining factor. Gestational limits, clinic waitlists, and fund capacity all impose increasingly tight deadlines. The path to abortion care access rewards speed, money, and flexibility—and penalizes those who lack them.

Step Three: Support and Privacy Protection Post-Abortion

Abortion care does not end with access to the procedure. During the post-abortion period, patients may still need various types of support.

Medical follow-up care is available throughout Texas. If complications arise, patients can seek emergency (or routine) medical treatment without fear of criminal charges. Additionally, the physicians are protected; state law permits doctors to provide all medically necessary care, including treatment for miscarriage, incomplete abortion, or infection. Additionally, patients are not required to disclose how an abortion occurred in order to be treated.

Additionally, abortion funds and practical support groups often provide aftercare information, emotional support, and referrals for follow-up services like medical referrals and legal rights information. The types of support vary by organization: some specialize in post-procedure transportation, others in counseling services, and still others in legal aid and follow-up care information. These services remain legal despite the ban on abortions themselves.  

Post-abortion support can also include privacy and rights education. Abortion access organizations provide information about patient confidentiality, medical disclosure requirements, and where to seek legal guidance if concerns arise. These services reflect the reality that enforcement and institutional responses can vary, even when receiving care is legal.

By creating barriers through cost, distance, and fear, lawmakers have reshaped abortion into a resource-dependent option—one that remains technically legal but practically unreachable for many. The consequences fall most heavily on Texans already facing economic or caregiving constraints.

“Anti-abortion legislation disproportionately affects people of color and people with lower incomes. Other factors like age, disability, gender identity, immigration status, and sexual orientation also factor in as obstacles to abortion access,” said Fund Texas Choice. “Abortion bans don’t stop abortions; they only make them less accessible and more dangerous.”

Disclaimer: The information contained in this article is provided for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. If you have legal questions, you should contact an attorney or a nonprofit organization like Fund Texas Choice.