A pregnant woman in Louisiana claimed that she was denied an abortion after the fetus was diagnosed with a fatal condition, according to a statement from her lawyer.
Nancy Davis said that she was denied the procedure after the fetus was diagnosed with acrania, a condition where the skull of the child does not form inside the womb, according to the National Library of Medicine.
This abnormality will not allow the child to survive long once it’s born.
In a statement released on social media, Davis’s lawyer, prominent civil rights attorney Ben Crump, said that the woman was alerted by her doctors of the diagnosis around week 10 of her pregnancy and instructed to get an abortion. However, she was denied the procedure “due to the fetus still having a heartbeat.”
“Ms. Nancy Davis was put in a horrifically cruel position by the State of Louisiana, left with only two choices: To carry the fetus until its inevitable death or to travel to another state to end the pregnancy weeks after she made the incredibly painful decision to do so,” Crump said.
Woman’s Hospital in Baton Rouge spokesperson Caroline Isemann said while she was unable to comment specifically on Davis’s case, there are many complexities involved in a case like hers, according to CNN.
“We look at each patient’s individual circumstances and how to remain in compliance with all current state laws to the best of our ability,” said Isemann.
She added: “Even if a specific diagnosis falls under medically futile exceptions provided by (the Louisiana Department of Health), the laws addressing treatment methods are much more complex and seemingly contradictory.”
The Hill has reached out to the Woman’s Hospital for comment.
“Regardless of what Louisiana lawmakers claim, the law is having its intended effect, causing doctors to refuse to perform abortions even when they are medically necessary out of fear of losing their medical licenses or facing criminal charges,” said Crump of the situation.
There are three abortion laws that went into effect after the Supreme Court ruled to overturn Roe v. Wade. These laws ban abortions at or shortly after the fetus is conceived, according to The New York Times.
Davis will travel outside of Louisiana to procure the abortion she was seeking, according to Crump. She is now 14 weeks pregnant.