as the justices agreed this week to hear# a case about access to mifepristone for## medication abortions, which make up more# than half of abortions in this country.
For many Americans, these Supreme Court# decisions have immediate real-life implications.
AMNA NAWAZ: And that is playing out this week in# Texas, where the state Supreme Court overturned## a ruling that would have allowed Dallas# resident Kate Cox to terminate her nonviable## pregnancy.
Cox had to leave the state to get that# abortion, but the ruling has broad repercussions.
And it's put medical providers on the front lines## of interpreting legal language# while caring for their p We're joined now by one such medical provider.## That is Dr. Amna Dermish.
She's# an OB-GYN based in Austi Dr. Dermish, welcome.
It's so nice to have# someone with my same name on the show,## though we differ slightly in pronunciation.
I want to ask you about this# exception in the Tex though.
There's a near-total abortion ban in# the state, the exception risk to the life of the mother.
In the Kate# Cox case, she said it was a risk.
The court## disagreed.
And they said in the ruling,# the exception is predicated on a doctor## acting within the zone of reasonable medical# judgment, which is what doctors do every day.
Does that make sense to you?
Do you# understand what the exception encompasses?
DR. AMNA DERMISH, Planned Parenthood of# Greater Texas: I don't.
And I think that## really gets to the heart of the matter, is# he alth care providers to be put into a# situation where every medical decision## that we make is being second-guessed# by the legislature and the judiciary.
And so physicians are placed# in a situation where they are## unsure whether what they consider to be# their sound, reasonable judgment wou be acceptable to our attorney general# or to judges in the state of Texas.
AMNA NAWAZ: And we spoke with Kate Cox# before that court ruling.
Here is just## a clip of what she had to say about# learning her pregnancy was KA TE COX, Plaintiff: She will either die# in my belly or I will carry her to term## and have to deliver her stillborn,# or, if she arrives into this world,## her life will be measured in minutes or hours# or days and plagued with medical devices.
She would need to be placed directly onto# hospice.
So imagine receiving that news and## pairing that with the risks and complications# of continuing the pregnancy and the childbirth.
AMNA NAWAZ: Dr. Dermish, knowing the# uncertainty you just expressed around## interpreting the law, how do you talk to# your patients about this kind of thing,## knowing many of them will face# the same thing that Kate Cox did?
DR. AMNA DERMISH: Yes.
these conversations are really hard to have,## and they're not happening in the way that# th Listening to Kate is heartbreaking,# because nobody should ever be in that## situation.
We're in a situation where doctors# are having to say, how sick is too sick?
How# close to death does somebody need to be?
And# who is allowed to make that determination?
Patients aren't allowed to choose their# own risks.
Is it a 20 percent risk of## death that is good enough to have an# abortion in Texas?
Or does it need to## be 70 percent?
How much blood is too much# blood for somebody to lose before we can## say that this is an acceptable# abortion in the state of Texas?
And it's an untenable situation.
People# are forced into these terrible th at they're not even allowed# to make.
And, as a physician,## it's just -- it's heartbreaking to be there.
I# have the training and the capa care to these people.
I live here in the state# of Texas, and I am prevented from providing## essential medical care to patients based on my# judgment and the patient's desires by my state.
AMNA NAWAZ: There's the mission to# serve your patients.
There's also the## legal risk you and your colleagues# face in ha What's the conversation been like# among other OB-GYNs in Texas?
DR. AMNA DERMISH: I mean, I think there's# a culture of fear that exists now.
Peopl aren't sure what is safe to say to their patients.## They're unsure what kind of care# they can offer their patients.
And they are afraid that, if they offer the# standard of care, that they will be that they will lose their license.
They will lose# their livelihood.
Their family will suffer.
And## again, as -- and then on the other side, you have# this patient who suffers even more from this.
And you go into medicine to help# people.
And to be held back from## that is really devastating as a provider.# And I think what we have seen in Kate Cox's## case is that the state is determined to# prevent us from practicing safe medicine.
We see that with the letters that the# attorney general sent to the hospitals and## to the physician, threatening them if they were to# proceed with providing the standard o think it's just going to continue to harm people# in ways that we can't even imagine at this point.
AMNA NAWAZ: Well, Doctor, as you# know, Texas is not alone in its## abortion restrictions there.
There's some# 15 other s The landscape shifts quickly as well.
The# Arizona Supreme Court just heard arguments## about an abortion ban.
A Wyoming judge is now# weighing whether or not to uphold a medication## abortion ban.
Do you consult and compare# notes with other doctors in other states?
DR. AMNA DERMISH: I mean, we have -- I'm# fortunate to belong to an amazing community## of providers across the country.
And in some# ways, it feels like a race to the bottom.
And when we talk about this, the focus is# always on the care that our patients need## and what we can still do to help them in the# face of all these restrictions.
Our patients## are terrified.
My colleagues are telling me that# patients are leaving their phones behind when they## travel across state lines to get abortion care# because they are afraid that they will be tracked## and they will be punished for seeking health# care.
That's the environment that we live in.
AMNA NAWAZ: That is Dr. Amna Dermish, OB-GYN,# based in Austin, Texas, joining us tonight.
Doctor, thank you so much.
DR. AMNA DERMISH: Thank you so much.
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