A Texas law imposing a near-total ban on abortion went into effect early Sept. 2 after the U.S. Supreme Court, in a 5-4 vote, denied an emergency request by abortion and women’s healthcare providers for an injunction on enforcement of the ban. The law makes abortions illegal once the rhythmic contracting of fetal cardiac tissue can be detected, often at six weeks.
In effect the law hands over power of enforcement to private citizens, by offering them cash payments to turn in people who are receiving abortions or aiding in the procedure. The ban prohibits abortion at a point when many women do not even realize they are pregnant. The law could still be blocked at some other stage.
On Sept. 1, Texas-based Match Chief Executive Shar Dubey said in a statement that she was setting up a fund to help employees pay for abortions. The same day the dating app’s competitor Bumble, also based in the Lone Star State, said in a Twitter post that the company had created a “relief fund supporting the reproductive rights of women and people across the gender spectrum who seek abortions in Texas.”The U.S flag and the Texas State flag fly over the Texas State Capitol in Austin, Texas, U.S.