AUSTIN, Texas _ U.S. District Court Judge Sam Sparks on Thursday barred Texas from implementing new rules that would require health care facilities to bury or cremate fetal remains.
The rules, which apply to both abortions and miscarriages, were scheduled to take effect Monday but have been suspended until Jan. 6.
The judge initially called on the state to voluntarily suspend the rules until after he issues a ruling in the case, but the state declined. Sparks said Thursday from the bench that as far as he knows, this is the first time Texas has wanted to move forward with a requirement facing a federal court lawsuit.
The Center for Reproductive Rights sued the state over the rules this week, asking for them to be permanently blocked. Sparks scheduled two days of testimony during the first week in January, after which he will make a decision on the case.
The fetal remains rules have sparked outrage from abortion rights groups who say they attempt to attribute personhood to a fetus and could further stigmatize abortions.
"We're glad that we don't have to comply with these completely medically unnecessary rules," said Fatimah Gifford, a spokeswoman for Whole Woman's Health. "They're so ridiculous."
Lawyers for the state defended the rules during Thursday's hearing, highlighting their "desire to treat the unborn with dignity and respect, even after death."
Gov. Greg Abbott, who directed the Department of State Health Services to propose the rules, said they are meant to respect the unborn fetus, as opposed to treating it as medical waste. The rules were introduced days after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down elements of a 2013 Texas abortion law, House Bill 2.
Amy Hagstrom-Miller, president and CEO of Whole Woman's Health, is the lead plaintiff in the case. She worked with the Center for Reproductive Rights on the Supreme Court case over House Bill 2.
