Texas businesses say abortion ban costs state nearly $15 billion a year

[In It to Win It]

Texas businesses say abortion ban costs state nearly $15 billion a year

AUSTIN (Nexstar) — 40 Texas companies and business leaders are entering the fight against Texas’ abortion ban, filing a brief with the Texas Supreme Court that argues the “ambiguity” in the laws medical exceptions cost the state an estimated $14.5 billion in lost revenue every year.

Austin-based dating app giant Bumble is leading the effort, submitting an amicus brief ahead of the high court’s arguments in Zurwaski v. Texas. Lead plaintiff Amanda Zurwaski is challenging the state’s abortion ban after she nearly died of sepsis due to a pregnancy complication. She says the Texas abortion ban’s vague medical exceptions prevented her doctor from providing a medically necessary abortion until she had nearly died.

“We feel it’s our duty not just to provide our workforce with access to reproductive health care, but to speak out – and speak loudly – against the retrogression of women’s rights,” Bumble founder and CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd said. “Texas’s confusing medical exceptions increase business costs, drive away talent, and threaten workforce diversity and well-being.”

Dozens of other companies signed onto the brief, including South by Southwest, Zilker Properties, ATX Television Festival, and Central Presbyterian Church.

[BootOutTheGoons]

1. These are not our father's Republicans

They value their hate and cruelty way more than money

[azureblue]

11. what they are

is the American Taliban - forcing their religious laws on every body else, and barely adhering to them, themselves.
That is all the anti abortion, anti trans and anti gay crap is about - religious dogma.
I have often wondered what would happen if a Christian group, decides that eating pork, shellfish, having tattoos, and wearing two types of cloth at the same time, plus lying, are floggable sins. And they marched into an iHop and started beating people who were eating breakfast. Can they, like these clods, force their religious values on others?

[BootOutTheGoons]

12. You are right

They are more interested in forcing their religion, hate and bigotry on others. Their idea of liberty is to take it from others. They value hurting others over grabbing more money.

They almost make me miss the republicans of yesteryear. Not quite but almost

[Turbineguy]

2. Control of women's bodies.

Republicans don't put a price on that.

[lindysalsagal]

3. They're not even paying to raise all the unwanted children, yet.

Wait till they require food, housing, education, Healthcare, possibly foster care, juvenile courts, legal representation, employment....

[littlemissmartypants]

4. I guess hitting them in the pocketbook might work.

Considering that the moral argument of providing women life saving health care doesn't seem to faze them.

[ShazzieB]

10. Maybe so.

Republicans are very fund of money, after all.

One thing that might really help would be if all the companies losing money in Texas start withholding any campaign contributions to Texas Republican politicians that they might normally make. If money talks, campaign contribution money screams!

[littlemissmartypants]

15. I think you're on to something, SB. ❤️

[Demovictory9]

5. 🦵 kick

[PortTack]

6. Oops

[ArkansasDemocrat1]

7. I've been boycotting Texas for years now.

I don't travel thru there for any reason. No AirBnB, no concerts, no eating out while there. No theme parks. Nothing. Texas doesn't get a penny from me.

[hildegaard28]

8. One way

We could split the Republican voters on this is by appealing to their fiscal conservatism. Legal abortion if fiscally conservative because it keeps more people off of welfare. Separate the religious/social conservatives from the fiscal conservatives, and we have an opening.

And if these companies were really serious about abortion hurting their businesses, they should just take their business out of Texas. Texas poached many businesses with the lure of low taxes and lax regulations. Now is the chance for blue states to return the favor.

[ShazzieB]

14. If being in Texas hurts their business enough, they probably will have to pull out eventally.

The keyword, of course, being "enough."

In the meantime, I'm happy that some of these companies are taking a stand. It gas to start somewhere.

[ancianita]

9. And that's just one state. TX's accounting across the other 13 states could double that cost.

[Sky Jewels]

13. Think about all the people and companies that quietly avoid Texas

because of their extreme rightwing women-hating policies. I was privy to a conversation of young women Gen Z recent college grads. They were discussing a friend who had moved to Austin and commenting that, even though Austin is a relatively sane oasis, they would never, ever consider moving there because it's still Texas and it's still under Abbott and the Christofascist Taliban rule.

There are untold opportunities and lucrative projects that that state has lost out on without even knowing it.

[David__77]

16. I know it's been said for decades. Still, it is true that eventually this shit won't fly any more.

Someday, they'll lose power there and there will be a sort of freakout on the right.

[UTUSN]

17. K&R