Study: Texas abortions declined as clinics got farther away

"Distance matters, and at some point the geographic barriers become insurmountable and constitute an undue burden," said Daniel Grossman, a study co-author and a member of a University of Texas research team that studies the impacts of the state's anti-abortion laws.

The study examined data from the Texas Department of State Health Services and was partly funded by the Susan T. Buffett Foundation, a major supporter of Planned Parenthood and other abortion-rights groups.

Before HB2 was struck down, Texas had argued that nearly 9 in 10 women would still live within 150 miles of an abortion provider under the law and that some women could be served by clinics in neighboring states.

Texas had 41 abortion clinics in 17 counties the year before the law took effect and 21 clinics in 6 counties the year after — making Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, Austin, San Antonio and El Paso the only cities with abortion providers.